Türkiye neutralises senior PKK terrorists

Turkish security forces have "neutralised" two terrorists in the southeastern province of Mardin, the country's interior minister said.

Minister Ali Yerlikaya said on Monday that during an operation the security forces tracked the two terrorists who blew themselves up in a vehicle.

Minister Yerlikaya reported, "As our armored vehicles approached the vehicle believed to be carrying terrorists, gunfire erupted from within the vehicle. Subsequently, realising they could not escape, the two terrorists detonated explosives, ending their own lives."

Orhan Elma, codenamed Rodi Hayri, was in the red category of Türkiye's wanted list, Yerlikaya said, adding efforts to identify the second terrorist are ongoing.

The identity of the second terrorist is currently under investigation.

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

Orchestrated four terrorist attacks

It was revealed that the incapacitated terrorist, Orhan Elma, had orchestrated four separate attacks, leading to the death of five people, including two security personnel, and injuries to several others.

Turkish authorities use the term "neutralise" to imply that the terrorists in question surrendered or were killed or captured.

In its more than 35-year terror campaign against Türkiye, the PKK – listed as a terrorist organisation by Türkiye, the US, and EU – has been responsible for the deaths of over 40,000 people, including women, children, and infants. The YPG is its Syrian branch.

Neutralising another terrorist in a cross-border operation

Security sources have revealed that the terrorist known by the code name "Akif Amed," identified as Bager Ondes, joined the terrorist organisation in 2013.

Affiliated with the PKK terrorist organisation, he participated in terror attacks against security forces in Iraq and Syria. He was actively involved as the unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) and drone operator for PKK/YPG in the Tel Rifaat region of Syria.

Having an arrest warrant issued by the Diyarbakir Chief Public Prosecutor's Office for "membership in a terrorist organisation with the aim of committing terrorism," Ondes came under surveillance by the National Intelligence Organization (MIT).

In a successful operation conducted by MIT in Syria, Ondes, the designated operator for PKK/YPG's UAVs and drones, was neutralised.

The Diyarbakir Chief Public Prosecutor's Office has confirmed that Ondes was actively contributing to the terrorist organisation's activities, particularly in coordinating and executing attacks against security forces using unmanned aerial vehicles.