Interior ministry says 20 PKK/KCK militants ‘neutralized’ in week

ANKARA

DHA photo

Security forces have “neutralized” 20 outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party/Kurdistan Communities Union (PKK/KCK) militants around the country over the past week, the Interior Ministry said in a statement on Jan. 16.

The ministry stated that security forces carried out 222 operations against the PKK/KCK, the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) and the Fethullahist Terror Organization (FETÖ), which has been blamed for the July 2016 coup attempt. 

It said 11 of the PKK/KCK militants were killed, three of them surrendered and six others were detained during operations between Jan. 9 and 15.      

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

A total of 419 suspects were detained in last week’s operations on charges of aiding PKK/KCK, 40 of whom were later arrested, the statement said.

The operations also saw the destruction of 23 shelters and hideouts, as well as two improvised explosives devices (IEDs).      

Security forces also seized 130 kilograms of substances used for explosives and 19 grenades, as well as 103 guns, including 19 automatic rifles, according to the ministry.      

In addition, 15 out of the 72 suspects who were detained in connection with ISIL were arrested, the statement added.      

Meanwhile, 405 of 839 suspects linked to FETÖ were also arrested pending trial, it said.