ANKARA

Turkish security forces “neutralized” 13 PKK terrorists in northern Iraq, the National Defense Ministry said on Monday.

The terrorists were “neutralized” in the Pence-Kaplan anti-terror operation region, the ministry said on Twitter.

“Our heroic Turkish Armed Forces continue to deal a heavy blow to the PKK terrorist group,” it added.

Taking advantage of the darkness of night, the terrorists were preparing to attack elements of the Turkish armed forces, a security source said on condition of anonymity due to restrictions on speaking to the media.

The terrorists who were detected by unarmed aerial vehicles were neutralized, the source said, adding Turkey’s ATAK-type attack helicopters also participated in the operation.

The Pence operations are a series of offensives Turkey has carried out since 2019 against terrorist organizations in northern Iraq, particularly the PKK.

The latest ones are the Pence-Simsek and Pence-Yildirim operations, launched by Ankara on April 23 in northern Iraq’s Metina and Avasin-Basyan regions near its borders.

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

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

In a separate development, Turkish security forces neutralized a terrorist, who was trying to detonate an explosive device in the Nusaybin district of Turkey’s southeastern Mardin province, security sources said.

Anadolu Agency website contains only a portion of the news stories offered to subscribers in the AA News Broadcasting System (HAS), and in summarized form. Please contact us for subscription options.