The June 2012 Hakkari clashes were a series of clashes between the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) and the Turkish Army near Şemdinli in Hakkâri Province in southeastern Turkey and northern Iraq (Northern and Southern Kurdistan).[3] The clashes began on June 19, with a coordinated PKK attack on a Turkish Army post in Yuksekova town near the Iraq-Turkey border.[3] On July 20–21, the PKK made an attempt to capture territory in Şemdinli, resulting in a Turkish counter-offensive which, according to Turkish security forces, resulted in eight Turkish security forces and 130 Kurdish militants killed.[4] The Kurdistan Communities Union (KCK) recorded over 400 incidents of shelling, air bombardment and other armed clashes during August 2012.[5] The events were described as the "heaviest fighting in Turkey in years".[4]