Nearly 1,600 terrorists ‘neutralized’ since beginning of 2021
ANKARA
At least 1,595 terrorists were neutralized in counterterror operations carried out in the past seven months in Turkey, the Defense Ministry said on July 29.
Speaking at a press briefing, Defense Ministry spokeswoman Major Pınar Kara stated that the fight against terrorism continued with increasing intensity and pace.
“In the last two months, a total of 40 operations, 10 of which are large and 30 of which are medium-sized, were conducted against terrorist organizations, including ISIL, primarily PKK and FETÖ, in the country and across the border,” Kara said.
“A total of 18,296 terrorists have been neutralized since July 24, 2015, and 1,595 since the beginning of this year,” she added.
Kara also stated that the Pençe-Şimşek and Pençe-Yıldırım operations, which started on April 23 and carried out simultaneously in Metina and Avaşin-Basyan regions in northern Iraq, successfully continued as planned.
Since the beginning of these operations, 215 terrorists have been neutralized, the spokesperson stated.
“Nearly 300 caves and shelters, more than 600 mines and IEDs were detected and destroyed, and a large number of weapons, ammunition and life materials were seized,” she added.
Pointing out that the possibilities and capabilities of the border troops are constantly being developed in order to protect and secure Turkey’s land borderlines, Kara said that a three-stage security system was established to prevent and catch suspects in border security as well as physical obstacles.
“In the light of recent developments, necessary troop shifts and reinforcements were made on the Iranian border,” she said as concerns over a potential new influx of irregular migrants from Afghanistan have grown in recent weeks.
