By Omer Koparan and Esref Musa

AZAZ, Syria

Turkish army on Sunday hit YPG/PKK terror group targets in northern Syria on Sunday.

A large number of terrorists were “neutralized” after Turkish howitzer hits terror targets in Azaz and Mare districts, local sources said on condition of anonymity due to security reasons.

Separately, a Free Syrian Army (FSA) member was killed, and three others injured in a clash with YPG/PKK terror group on Saturday night.

The Turkish military also struck terror targets in Syria’s Tal Rifat over the past three days,.

Situation in Tal Rifat

For the last three years, Tal Rifat has been occupied by the YPG/PKK, which has dubbed the territory between Tal Rifat and Manbij as the “Shahba Canton.”

The YPG/PKK occupied Tal Rifat in 2016 in hopes of linking Afrin, a city in northwestern Syria, to areas under its control east of the Euphrates River, thus establishing a zone of influence along Syria’s border with Turkey.

Syria’s Al-Bab district, however, which is located between Tal Rifat and Manbij, falls within Operation Euphrates Shield’s area-of-operations, thus disrupting the YPG/PKK’s sought-for territorial link.

Some 250,000 refugees from Tal Rifat and its outskirts have taken up temporary residence in the opposition-held city of Azaz, located adjacent to the Euphrates Shield zone.

In its more than 30-year terror campaign against Turkey, the PKK -- recognized as a terrorist group by Turkey, the U.S., and the EU -- has been responsible for the deaths of some 40,000 people. The YPG/PYD is the group's Syrian branch.