ANKARA 

Security forces neutralized at least three PKK terrorists in southeastern Turkey, the Interior Ministry said on Saturday.

Under Operation Yildirim-7, the armed terrorists were targeted in an air-backed operation by the local gendarmerie command in Diyarbakir province’s Lice district, the ministry said in a statement.

The operation in the region is ongoing, it added.

Turkish authorities often use the word “neutralize” to imply the terrorists in question surrendered or were killed or captured.

This summer, Turkey launched a series of security operations to neutralize terrorists believed to be hiding out in the country's east and southeast.

In its more than 30-year terror campaign against Turkey, the PKK – listed as a terrorist group by Turkey, the US, and the EU – has been responsible for the deaths of nearly 40,000 people, including women, children, and infants.

* Writing by Merve Aydogan