PKK's logistics head 'neutralized': Turkish General Staff

ANKARA - Anadolu Agency

Turkish airstrikes “neutralized” nine militants, including a high-ranking one, in the country’s southeastern Şırnak and Siirt provinces and northern Iraq’s Kandil region, the military said on July 19.

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

The Turkish General Staff did not specify the groups involved, but Turkey is embroiled in a long-running war against the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) in the area.

According to the military’s statement, the operations were conducted between July 17-19 in the Uludere district of Şırnak, Eruh district of Siirt and the mountainous Kandil region of northern Iraq.

The military also on July 19 confirmed that PKK’s logistics head, Hasan Çakmak, was “neutralized” in airstrikes on July 13 in northern Iraq.

Hasan Çakmak, who was also known by his code name Delil Karakocan, was one of the three militants killed in the airstrikes, a statement by Turkish General Staff said.