July 23, 2018•Update: July 23, 2018
By Sertac Bulur, Hasan Namli
ANKARA / DIYARBAKIR
At least 40 PKK terrorists have been "neutralized" as part of anti-terror operations across Turkey over the past week, said an Interior Ministry statement on Monday.
Turkish authorities often use the word "neutralized" in their statements to imply that the terrorists in question either surrendered or were killed or captured.
In its statement, the ministry said the Turkish Armed Forces carried out 1,898 counter-terror operations on July 16-22 with the assistance of land and air forces.
The ministry said 26 of the terrorists were killed, six others were captured, and eight surrendered to authorities.
Security forces destroyed shelters, including several caves and improvised explosives, during operations in the southeastern provinces of Diyarbakir, Tokat and Hakkari, the statement said.
Meanwhile, another PKK terrorist was neutralized in Diyarbakir province overnight, the governorate said.
The governorate, in a statement, said a terrorist was spotted at 00.25 a.m. local time (2125GMT) during gendarmerie's routine surveillance.
The gendarmerie also seized an M-16 infantry rifle, a hand grenade and an anti-tank rocket launcher weapon.
Listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the U.S., and the EU, the PKK has been responsible for the death of some 40,000 people since the mid-1980s, including women and children.
