Families of civilians accidentally killed in a Turkish air strike will receive compensation from the government.
Turkish F-16 fighter planes attacked a group of Kurdish smugglers in Northern Iraq after they were detected by intelligence drones. The attack also led to the deaths of 35 civilian and demonstrations in Kurdish cities.
The attack was one of many in a conflict which has lasted for decades.
Bulent Arinc, Deputy Prime Minister, said compensation would be paid within a few days but did not go into specifics.
This incident has undermined efforts of the Turkish government to redress grievances from the Kurdish people who make up about 20% of the population in the country. Many Kurds have asked for autonomy in south-east Turkey where they are mainly situated.
Mr Arinc continued to say that an investigation into the incident was underway, and stated that artillery units had already fired warning shots into the area of the air strike, but the civilians still moved into the area. He added the government was trying to find ways to increase the amount of compensation available.
He said: “The occurrence of the incident was in no way intentional.
“All the findings here were determined as warranting an operation.”
Kurdish rebels have often used the same paths as smugglers to launch attacks against Turkey.
Since the deaths of the smugglers and civilians, the Kurdish Workers’ Party, which has been labelled a terrorist group by the Western World and Turkey, has urged protestors to mobilise and has threatened Turkey with retaliation.
The conflict between Turkey and Kurdish rebels has been raging since 1984.
