Feb. 25 (Bloomberg) -- Turkey said it killed 153 Kurdish fighters since sending troops into northern Iraq on Feb. 21, as it resisted calls by the U.S. to end the military operation.

The Turkish army has killed 41 militants of the Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK, in the past 24 hours, the military said on its Web site today. Two soldiers also died in the fighting, bringing the death toll among Turkish troops to 17, it added.

Turkey won't end the military operation until ``targets are reached,'' government spokesman Cemil Cicek told reporters in the capital Ankara, adding that Turkey was permitted to enter northern Iraq under articles of the United Nations Charter governing rights to self-defense.

The U.S. government and the UN, concerned that the battles may further destabilize Iraq, have urged NATO member Turkey to wrap up the incursion as soon as possible. Northern Iraq has been relatively stable since the U.S.-led invasion to topple Saddam Hussein began in 2003.

Turkish F-16 fighters, attack helicopters and artillery continued to pound about 30 suspected PKK positions in support of troops on the ground, the military said today.

Turkey has fought the PKK, branded a terrorist organization by the U.S. and the European Union, since 1984 at the cost of almost 40,000 lives. About 4,000 of the group's fighters have retreated to Iraq since their leader Abdullah Ocalan was captured and put on trial by Turkey in 1999.

PKK Claim

The PKK has killed at least 81 Turkish soldiers since Feb. 21, Bahoz Erdal, a leader of the group, told the Netherlands- based Firat news agency. Up to 10,000 soldiers are taking part in the operation, Turkish media said.

The Turkish government should respect the international borders between Iraq and Turkey, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon said on Feb. 22. The U.S. hopes the fighting will be short-lived and that Turkey will avoid civilian casualties, Defense Secretary Robert Gates told reporters on Feb. 24.

Nabi Sensoy, Turkey's ambassador to the U.S., said Turkey doesn't think it will be able to wipe out the PKK from northern Iraq and that the operation is ``aimed at enhancing the results'' of the air strikes on PKK camps along the border in December.

`Full Coordination'

``Nobody is really expecting a total annihilation of the whole organization with this kind of operation, which is limited in scope,'' Sensoy said in a telephone interview today. ``This is not an operation intended to wipe out the PKK.''

Turkey doesn't intend to leave any troops inside Iraq once its objectives are completed, Sensoy said. The Turkish incursion, he said, was carried out in ``full coordination'' with the U.S.

``We have been in touch with the military and the White House and the State Department and the Pentagon over our plans for the land operation,'' Sensoy said. ``Turkey and the United States have been sharing intelligence in a very close way in the last three months.''

Sensoy said Turkey had also previewed the operation to Iraqi President Jalal Talabani, Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki and to officials from the Kurdish regional government. President Abdullah Gul has issued an invitation to Talibani to visit Turkey, Sensoy said.

Late yesterday, Nerchivan Barzani, prime minister of the semi-autonomous area, said Turkey is widening the operation to include infrastructure of the Iraqi Kurdish administration governing northern Iraq.

``This demonstrates that despite its stated aims, Turkey is targeting the Kurdistan region itself,'' he said in a statement on his administration's Web site. ``I am surprised by Baghdad's weak response to this clear violation of its sovereignty.''

Turkey has accused Iraq's Kurds of harboring PKK militants and has called on Barzani to arrest the group's leaders.

To contact the reporter on this story: Mark Bentley in Ankara at mbentley3@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: February 25, 2008 14:13 EST