Turkey 'neutralizes' 3 PKK terrorists in northern Iraq

By Beyza Binnur Donmez

ANKARA (AA) – Turkish security forces "neutralized" three more PKK terrorists in northern Iraq, Turkey’s National Defense Ministry said on Sunday.

"Three PKK terrorists detected in the Operation Pence-Yildirim (Operation) zone were neutralized with an air operation," the ministry said on Twitter.

Turkish authorities often use the word neutralized in statements to imply the terrorists in question surrendered or were killed or captured.

The terrorist PKK often uses bases in northern Iraq, just across Turkey’s southern border, to plot terror attacks in Turkey.

Turkey has carried out a series of offensives since 2019 against terrorist groups in northern Iraq, particularly the PKK. The latest operations are Pence-Simsek and Pence-Yildirim launched this April in the Metina and Avasin-Basyan regions, following up on operations Pence-Kaplan and Pence-Kartal, which began in June 2020.

In its over 35-year terror campaign against Turkey, the PKK – listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the US, and EU – has been responsible for the deaths of at least 40,000 people, including women, children, and infants.