BAGHDAD, Feb 22 (Reuters) - The U.S. military said on Friday it was aware that Turkish forces had launched an offensive into northern Iraq to target Kurdish rebel guerrillas.

Rear Admiral Gregory Smith, a U.S. military spokesman in Baghdad, said the operation was understood to be of "limited duration" and specifically targeted at Kurdish PKK fighters in Iraq's largely autonomous region of Kurdistan.

"Turkey has given its assurances that it will do everything possible to avoid collateral damage to innocent citizens or Kurdish infrastructure," Smith said in a statement.

(Reporting by Michael Holden; editing by Dean Yates)

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