YPG/PKK terror group suffers heavy losses in August

By Yunus Okur

ERZURUM, Turkey

A total of 170 YPG/PKK terrorists in Turkey and abroad were "neutralized" in August, including senior figures of the terror group, according to data compiled by Anadolu Agency.

Turkish authorities often use the word "neutralized" in their statements to imply that the terrorists in question either surrendered or were killed or captured.

On Aug. 1-31, 11 security personnel were martyred in terror attacks, while 19 security personnel and two civilians were injured.

In the same period, 253 terror suspects were arrested as part of operations against PKK in Turkish cities, including senior figures of Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) and Democratic Regions Party (DBP). Of 70 were remanded in custody.

Ibrahim Coban and Baris Oner on the Interior Ministry’s "red list", C. Sinan Oktulmus, Omer Duran and Vehbi Tas on the "orange list", and Deniz Tali and M. Sirin Ozen on the "grey list" were among those neutralized in August.

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

Also, PKK's senior figures Ismail Ozden and Pinar Yildirim, the so-called representative of the far-left TKP/ML terror group in eastern Tunceli province's Ovacik district Ilker Tezer, and PKK's so-called representative in eastern Erzurum province Mahmut were neutralized.

The operations continue to target PKK terrorist positions in northern Iraq.

Nearly 400 terrorists in northern Iraq and the Mt. Qandil region over the past months.

In its more than 30-year terror campaign against Turkey, the PKK -- listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the U.S. and the EU -- has been responsible for the death of some 40,000 people, including those of women and children.

The PYD/YPG are Syrian branches of the terrorist PKK and the focus of Turkey's successful counter-terrorist Operation Olive Branch in Afrin, Syria, near the border with Turkey.