Footage shows PKK training camp for kidnapped children

By Baris Gundogan

ANKARA (AA) - Footage captured by the Turkish Armed Forces shows YPG/PKK training camp in Afrin’s Hacihasanli village in northwestern Syria, where children kidnapped for recruitment were taken.

A number of memory cards found on "neutralized" terrorists contained video files that reveal the camp was a training center where children between ages 13-17 had been kept and trained.

One of the videos, shared by the military, shows the training camp in the Hacihasanli village -- a camp that was totally destroyed by the Turkish Army.

Situated in a forestland, the camp had facilities such as a water well, a shooting range and a dormitory.

Terrorists in Afrin kidnapped children for recruitment and trained them in this center.

Turkey launched Operation Olive Branch on Jan. 20 to clear terrorist groups from Afrin in northwestern Syria amid growing threats from the region.

On Sunday, Turkish-backed troops liberated the town center of Afrin, which had been a major hideout for the YPG/PKK since 2012.

After the town center of Afrin was liberated, Turkish military began operations to search for mines and improvised explosive devices to wipe out any traces of terrorism in order to help residents go back to normal lives.

The Turkish General Staff has repeatedly stated that the objective of Operation Olive Branch is to establish security and stability along Turkey's borders and the region as well as protect Syrians from terrorist cruelty and oppression.