New videos of Turkish counterterrorism operations abroad emerged on Monday as the country’s top defense official gave the number of “neutralized” (eliminated) terrorists of the PKK since early October. Videos shared by the Defense Ministry showed tanks and mortars pounding targets in Syria’s north, accompanied by a message, “We tirelessly continue hitting terrorist targets as part of our self-defense efforts.”
Addressing an event for a new school year for the country’s top military schools, Defense Minister Yaşar Güler said that they carried out “comprehensive and efficient air operations” flanked by “fire support” from land forces against terrorists. He said that more than 150 terrorists were neutralized in operations in Iraq’s north on Oct. 1, 3 and 4 and Syria’s north on Oct. 5, 6 and 8. He noted that successful operations destroyed “facilities and places (where terrorist groups earn their revenues).”
On Oct. 4, Türkiye announced that security forces were authorized to target everything owned or controlled by the PKK terrorist group in Syria and Iraq, from infrastructure to energy facilities. The escalated crackdown followed the Oct. 1 attack in the capital, Ankara, where two terrorists attempted to storm the headquarters of the Turkish National Police on the day of the start of a new term of Parliament a few hundred meters away.
Güler said Türkiye was committed to launching operations against “legitimate targets” in Iraq and Syria, signaling more operations against the terrorist group.
Media outlets reported on Monday that a Turkish airstrike killed 20 terrorists in al-Malikiyah, an area controlled by PKK/YPG in northeastern Syria, though the strike or the number of terrorists killed was not confirmed by Turkish authorities.
Since 2016, Türkiye has carried out successive ground operations to remove the PKK/YPG on its immediate border with Syria. Recently, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan signaled another land offensive against the group that is responsible for the Ankara attack and another attack that killed six in Istanbul in November 2022. The PKK/YPG is also responsible for killing civilians living on the Turkish side of the border through rocket attacks. Türkiye is concerned over the infiltration of PKK/YPG terrorists into the country through a lengthy border to carry out attacks.
The Defense Ministry announced that warplanes hit six PKK/YPG targets in northern Syria late Sunday. The air operation destroyed the targets, which included an oil facility used by the terrorist group, as well as shelters where terrorists were believed to take refuge, the ministry said in a statement on X.
Several terrorists were “neutralized” during the aerial operation, it added. Precautions were taken during the operation to ensure innocent civilians, friendly forces, historical and cultural assets, and the environment were not harmed, the ministry said.
Since 2016, Ankara has launched a trio of successful anti-terror operations across its border in northern Syria to prevent the formation of a terror corridor and enable the peaceful settlement of residents: Euphrates Shield (2016), Olive Branch (2018) and Peace Spring (2019).
In its more than 40-year terror campaign against Türkiye, the PKK – listed as a terror organization by Türkiye, the U.S. and the EU – has been responsible for the deaths of more than 40,000 people, including women, children and infants. The YPG is its Syrian offshoot.
On Sunday, Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya announced that they had captured 2,554 fugitive suspects as part of a nationwide counterterrorism operation against the PKK since the Oct. 1 attack. Yerlikaya said on social media platform X the fugitives were caught as part of a nationwide initiative dubbed “Operation Heroes.”
“We will not allow fugitive criminals to roam our streets. We are determined to catch and hand them over to justice,” he said. Authorities had been searching for 12 of the fugitives for over 10 years, Yerlikaya said, while 91 have been sought for 5-10 years and 2,451 for fewer than five years.
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