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Have Turkey-PKK clashes crossed fatal threshold?

The PKK’s alleged shooting down of a Turkish assault helicopter marks a major development in the ongoing fighting between the two sides.
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In an Aug. 13 article on the spiraling violence in Turkey, I argued that the shooting down of a Turkish warplane or helicopter by the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) with a portable, shoulder-held, surface-to-air missile (MANPADS) would be a critical threshold for escalation. In a Dec. 14 article, I noted that the MANPADS threat had increased and that the PKK could use these systems against aerial targets inside Turkey.

Now it appears that this much-feared eventuality has come to pass.

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