30 PKK militants killed in one week: Interior ministry

ANKARA

AA photo

Some 30 outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) militants were killed in security operations carried out between March 6 and 13, the Turkish Interior Ministry has said. 

Some 70 militants were “neutralized” in nationwide operations, according to the ministry.  

Authorities often use the word “neutralized” in their statements to imply the militant in question was either killed or captured.      

The ministry statement said a total of 35 militants were caught and five militants surrendered to authorities. 

Some 238 operations were carried out by the Gendarmerie Special Forces, Gendarmerie Commando Units, Police Special Forces and the Turkish Armed Forces’ (TSK) land and ground units. A total of 361 were detained over helping an organization, of whom 19 were arrested. 

As a part of the efforts against foreign militants, 34 people with suspected links to the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) were detained. 

In addition, some 1218 people were detained, of whom 33 were arrested, as a part of the fight against the Fethullahist Terrorist Organization (FETÖ), widely believed to have orchestrated the July 15, 2016 failed coup attempt. 

Some 22 people were also detained over alleged links to “leftist terrorist organizations.”