Turkey launches ground operation in Iraq By CHRISTOPHER TORCHIA, Associated Press Writer 1 minute ago Turkish troops have launched a ground incursion across the border into Iraq in pursuit of separatist Kurdish rebels, the military said Friday — a move that dramatically escalates Turkey's conflict with the militants. It's the first confirmed ground operation by the Turkish military into Iraq since the U.S.-led invasion that toppled Saddam Hussein, and it raised concerns that it could trigger a wider conflict with the U.S.-backed Iraqi Kurds. The ground operation started after Turkish warplanes and artillery bombed suspected rebel targets on Thursday, the...