Turkish commandos have entered the Iraqi border region of Dahuk, in an operation aimed at eradicating Kurdistan Workers Party rebels.

According to a security official, about 350 Turkish commandos crossed the Iraqi border on Sunday. The operation came after Turkish artillery bombarded villages near the Iraqi-Turkish border overnight.

It was unclear whether the Turkish forces would stay in Iraq's Kurdish Autonomous Region or pull out, the source added.

Turkey has warned Washington and Baghdad that it would not hesitate to eliminate Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) guerillas if the two countries fail to produce effective measures against the militant group.

The PKK, blacklisted as a terrorist organization by the majority of the international community, took up arms for a Kurdish self-rule region in southeast Turkey in 1984. The conflict has so far claimed more than 37,000 lives.