Turkey 'neutralizes' 12 PKK terrorists in northern Iraq

ISTANBUL

Turkey "neutralized" at least 12 PKK/KCK terrorists in northern Iraq, the country's National Defense Ministry said on Monday.

Terrorists were targeted in the Avasin-Basyan region within the Operation Pence-Yildirim zone, a Turkish cross-border counter-terrorism operation, the ministry said on Twitter.

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

The Pence operations are a series of offensives Turkey has carried out since 2019 against terrorist organizations in northern Iraq, particularly the PKK.

The latest ones are the Pence-Simsek and Pence-Yildirim operations launched this April in the Metina and Avasin-Basyan regions near Turkey's borders.

In its more than 35-year terror campaign against Turkey, the PKK – listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the US, and EU – has been responsible for the deaths of at least 40,000 people, including women, children, and infants.