Turkish army kills 1,250 terrorists in SE since July

DIYARBAKIR, Turkey

An estimated 1,250 terrorists have been killed so far during operations against PKK terrorist group, according to numbers compiled from data provided by security sources.

The joint operations carried out by the Turkish Army and security forces in the southeast aim to clear the cities from PKK terrorists, their barricades and ditches amid curfews.

Since July of last year, an estimated 1,250 terrorists have been killed in Turkey’s Nusaybin, Dargecit and Derik districts of Mardin province, Silvan and Sur districts of Diyarbakir along with the Silopi, Cizre and Idil districts of the province of Sirnak and Varto district of Mus.

The number of ditches and barricades removed in the operations in counter-terrorism operations has reached 2,307 in total, 85 of which took place in Dargecit, 22 in Silvan, 788 in Silopi, 951 in Cizre, 24 in Derik, 52 in Nusaybin, 174 in Idil and 211 in Sur.

Nearly 3,000 explosives planted in houses, gardens and on roads have been destroyed in the areas where the operations have been completed.

Ditches and barricades

The first six-day-curfew in Nusaybin began on Oct. 1, 2015 in order to clear the area from ditches, barricades and explosives.

Seven more curfews followed in Nusaybin as terrorist attacks continued, during which 52 ditches and barricades were removed and more than 50 terrorist members were killed.

The operations in Dargecit occurred during curfews on Oct. 10-13 and Dec.11-29, leading to the removal of 85 ditches and barricades and the death of 33 terrorists.

In the Silvan district of Diyarbakir province, however, a 12-day of curfew was announced on Nov. 3, which ended with the removal of 22 ditches and barricades and the death of 15 terrorists.

In operations in Silopi, 145 terrorists were killed, 518 barricades were removed and 270 ditches were closed up.

The security forces removed 699 barricades in Cizre during counter-terrorism operations. Security forces also closed up 252 ditches and killed 666 terrorists so far.

Seven terrorists were killed, 17 barricades were removed and seven ditches were closed up during the operations in the Derik district of Mardin province.

Ongoing operations in Sur and Idil

The curfew and counter-terrorism operations launched in Diyarbakir’s Sur district are still ongoing.

So far, 251 terrorists have been killed and 302 handmade explosives disposed of. Moreover, 204 barricades and seven ditches have also been removed.

After the curfew announced on Feb. 16 in the Idil district of Sirnak province, the Turkish Army and security forces started an operation on Feb. 18.

Sixty-five terrorists were killed during the operations while 132 barricades removed, 42 ditches closed and 290 handmade explosives were disposed of.