Turkey 'neutralizes' 2 PKK terrorists in northern Iraq airstrike

By Zehra Nur Duz and Bestami Bodruk

ANKARA/DIYARBAKIR, Turkey (AA) – Turkish forces “neutralized” two PKK terrorists in northern Iraq, the National Defense Ministry said on Monday.

The terrorists were targeted in an airstrike in the Hakurk region, the ministry said in a statement.

Turkish authorities often use the word “neutralized” in statements to imply the terrorists in question surrendered or were killed or captured.

The PKK terror group often hides out in northern Iraq, just across Turkey’s southern border, to plot terror attacks in Turkey.

Separately, 18 PKK suspects were arrested in operations in Turkey on Monday, security sources said.

The suspects were nabbed in Diyarbakir, Izmir, Antalya, and Mardin provinces, said the sources, who requested anonymity due to restrictions on speaking to the media.

They included provincial heads of the Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP), a party which the Turkish government accuses of having links to the PKK terror group.

Organizational documents and digital materials used for propaganda by the PKK were also seized in the operations, the sources added.

In its more than 35-year terror campaign against Turkey, the PKK – listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the US, and EU – has been responsible for the deaths of over 40,000 people, including women, children and infants.​​​​​​​