PKK militant on wanted list captured

ANKARA - Anadolu Agency

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A wanted PKK/KCK militant with a bounty of thousands of Turkish Liras on his head was captured in southeastern Turkey, the Interior Ministry said on Sept. 6. 

The PKK is listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey as well as the United States and the European Union.

In a written statement, the ministry said the militant Nurettin Canan was captured in an operation conducted by the counter-terrorism department of the Provincial Security Directorate in the Hakkari province and the Intelligence Group Authority.

Nurettin Canan was in the gray category of the wanted list, for whom the ministry had offered a bounty of 300,000 liras (around $45,500), the statement said.

The wanted list is divided into five color-coded categories, with red as the most wanted, followed by blue, green, orange and grey.

On a related note, the military said at least three PKK militants were “neutralized” during an air operation in northern Iraq on Sept. 6.

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

The militants, who were in preparation of an attack on Turkey’s bases, were “neutralized” by airstrikes carried out in the Hakurk region, the Turkish General Staff said on Twitter.