ANKARA

Turkey neutralized a wanted PKK terrorist in northern Iraq, security sources announced on Wednesday.

Fadil Ekinci -- codenamed Zinar -- a so-called senior PKK figure in the Zap region of Iraq, was neutralized in an anti-terror operation carried out by Turkey's National Intelligence Organization in Iraq's Zap region.

Ekinci was in the blue category of the Interior Ministry's wanted list.

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

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

In its more than 30-year terror campaign against Turkey, the PKK -- listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the U.S. and the European Union -- has been responsible for the deaths of 40,000 people, including women, children, and infants. The YPG is the PKK's Syrian offshoot.

*Writing by Handan Kazanci