Turkish ground offensive in N.Iraq is over

Turkey's major land offensive against Kurdish PKK rebels in northern Iraq has ended, the private broadcaster NTV said on Friday.

NTV gave no source for its information. Officials were not immediately available to comment on the report.

Turkey sent thousands of troops into remote, mountainous northern Iraq on February 21 to crush rebels of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) who have been using the region as a base from which to stage attacks on Turkish territory.

Turkey's political and military leaders had said the operation would continue for as long as necessary but have come under pressure from the United States, their NATO ally, to keep the campaign as short and carefully targeted as possible.

On Thursday, U.S. President George W. Bush urged Turkey to end the land offensive swiftly.

Washington, like Ankara, brands the PKK a terrorist organisation, and has been supplying intelligence to the Turkish military on the PKK in Iraq. But it fears that a prolonged campaign could stoke regional instability.

Turkey's military says it has killed 237 rebels in the eight-day ground offensive and suffered the loss of 24 soldiers. The PKK claims to have killed more than 100 Turkish troops but has not given a figure for rebel casualties.