Türkiye 'neutralizes' 5 PKK terrorists in northern Iraq

By Zafer Fatih Beyaz

ANKARA (AA) – Turkish security forces "neutralized" five PKK terrorists in northern Iraq near the Turkish border, the National Defense Ministry said on Saturday.

The terrorists were targeted in an airstrike in the Operation Claw-Lock zone in Metina, the ministry said in a statement.

Turkish authorities use the term "neutralize" to imply the terrorists in question surrendered or were killed or captured.

PKK terrorists often hide out across the border in northern Iraq to plot terror attacks in Türkiye.

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

In a separate statement, the ministry said Enes Kirmizikoc, a Turkish soldier, was killed on Friday after being hit by a helicopter blade.

Meanwhile, security sources said a terrorist earlier “neutralized” by Turkish intelligence in northern Iraq was identified as Ozgur Alparslan, a PKK terrorist who ordered actions that caused the forest fires in Türkiye in 2021.

The MIT “neutralized” Alparslan, codenamed Ozgur Sores, during an operation in Gara in northern Iraq, said the sources, who requested anonymity due to restrictions on speaking to the media.

Alparslan was in the green category on Turkish Interior Ministry’s list of wanted terrorists.

Türkiye's wanted list is divided into five color-coded categories, with red as the most wanted, followed by blue, green, orange, and gray.