EDIRNE, Türkiye

Turkish border forces arrested on Thursday 22 suspected terror group members while they were trying to flee to Greece during the past week, local authorities said on Thursday.

The suspects were nabbed by local gendarmerie teams in the northwestern Edirne province during patrols in the restricted military zone along the border with Greece, the governor's office said.

Among them were seven suspected members of the PKK and 15 members of the Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETO).

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 over 40,000 people, including women, children, and infants.

FETO and its US-based leader Fethullah Gulen orchestrated the defeated coup of July 15, 2016 in Türkiye, in which 252 people were killed and 2,734 wounded.

Ankara also accuses the terror group of being behind a long-running campaign to overthrow the state through the infiltration of Turkish institutions, particularly the military, police and judiciary.

*Writing by Esra Tekin in Istanbul