UPDATES WITH MORE TERRORISTS KILLED
By Cuneyt Celik and Fecri Barlik
KARS, Turkey (AA) - Nine PKK terrorists were neutralized in airstrikes in eastern Turkey on Tuesday, a provincial governorate said.
Turkish authorities often use the word "neutralized" in their statements to imply that the terrorists in question were either killed, captured or surrendered.
According to a statement from Kars governorate, six terrorists were neutralized as part of an air operation backed by F-16 fighter jets on Cemce-Madur regions.
Separately, three terrorists were killed in eastern Siirt province in a drone strike in Mount Tandir region.
Listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the U.S. and the EU, the PKK has waged a wide-ranging terror campaign against the Turkish state since the mid-1980s, in which an estimated 40,000 people have been killed.