A Turkish soldier was killed and another wounded in an attack on a Turkish military base in northern Iraq, the Turkish Defense Ministry announced today..

“An attempted invasion” was attempted at a Turkish military base in northern Iraq and one soldier was killed during the ensuing clash, the ministry said.

The Turkish base was attacked by its members Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), according to the private Turkish television network NTV.

In response, a military operation is underway in the area, authorities said.

A total of 17 Turkish soldiers have been killed in attacks that took place last January and December on Turkish military bases in northern Iraq.

The Turkish military regularly launches military ground and air operations against PKK militants and their positions in northern Iraq, autonomous Kurdistan or the mountainous Sinjar region.

Over the past 25 years, Turkey has established several dozen military bases in Iraqi Kurdistan fighting the PKK, which also has bases in that region.

The PKK, in an armed struggle against Turkish authorities since 1984, claimed responsibility for an attack in October on the headquarters of the Turkish Interior Ministry in Ankara, in which two police officers were injured.