ISTANBUL, Oct. 24 — Turkish warplanes and helicopters on Wednesday attacked the broad mountain passes that Kurdish separatist rebels use to travel from hide-outs in northern Iraq into Turkey, the state-run Anatolian News Agency reported.

The report did not disclose the number of aircraft involved or whether they had entered Iraqi airspace. Some unconfirmed news reports said they had flown into Iraqi territory.

The use of warplanes followed days of Turkish shelling in response to a raid by Kurdish militants into Turkey that killed 12 Turkish soldiers on Sunday.

In Baghdad, the American second in command, Lt. Gen. Raymond T. Odierno, said he could not confirm that any warplanes from Turkey, a NATO ally, had flown into Iraqi airspace, which is under United States control.