5 PKK terrorists killed in southeastern Turkey

By Ekrem Payan

SIRNAK, Turkey (AA) - Turkish security forces killed five PKK terrorists in the southeastern Sirnak province on Tuesday, the regional governor's office said.

According to a statement from the Sirnak Governor's Office, security forces killed one PKK terrorist in the Ugur Tepe region while another two terrorists were killed in an airstrike attack on a PKK shelter in the northern part of the Mehmet Yusuf Mountain.

The statement said that the two operations were part of the ongoing counterterrorism operation which started on Nov. 2 in the Bestler-Dereler region of Sirnak.

The number of terrorists killed in the operation since the beginning of November rose to 34, the statement added.

Earlier the Interior Ministry said in a statement that Hulya Eroglu, also known by her codename Gulbahar, was among the terrorists killed in the ongoing operation.

Eroglu was said to be sole terrorist in the “red category” of the Turkish Interior Ministry’s list of wanted persons.

The Interior Ministry’s list is divided into five color-coded categories with red designating the most wanted, followed by blue, green, orange and grey.

In addition, two terrorists were killed by the Turkish Air Force after they were spotted by an unmanned aerial vehicle in the Cudi mountain region.

Anti-terror operations continue in the region.

The PKK is listed as a terrorist organization in Turkey, the U.S., and the EU. In its over three-decade terror campaign against Turkey, more than 40,000 people have been killed.

Since the group resumed its armed campaign in July 2015, more than 1,200 people, including security force personnel and civilians, have lost their lives.