Türkiye neutralises two high-profile PKK terrorists

Turkish security forces "neutralised" two PKK terrorists in the southeastern provinces of Sirnak and Diyarbakir, the country's interior minister has said.

Ali Yerlikaya said on Monday both terrorists were involved in terror attacks that resulted in the death of nine security personnel and the injury of 21 others.

Ercan Serhat, codenamed Reis Gulturan, was in the red category of Türkiye's wanted terrorists' list. He was captured alive with his weapon, Yerlikaya said on X.

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

Serhat plotted seven terror attacks in Sirnak between 2016 and 2022, according to Yerlikaya.

The other terrorist, Habib Karakoc, was wanted in the grey category.

Known by the codename Agit Berxwedan, he was involved in six terror attacks in Diyarbakir and eastern Mus province.

Turkish authorities use the term "neutralise" to imply 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 more than 40,000 people, including women, children, and infants.

Anti-terror operations

Türkiye neutralised over 1,271 YPG/PKK terrorists since the beginning of this year, including those hiding out across the border in Iraq and northern Syria, the National Defence Ministry said.

"A total of 42 terrorists were neutralised last week," a National Defence Ministry official told reporters at a briefing in the capital Ankara on last week.

"Efforts continue to establish stability in Syria as soon as possible, enabling the safe return of Syrians to a normalised environment," the official said, referring to Türkiye’s efforts in northern Syria to prevent the formation of a terror corridor, protecting Türkiye’s border and ensuring the safety of local Syrians.

All necessary measures are being taken to maintain security and stability in operation zones, and terrorist attacks are being met with proportional responses, the official added.

Since January, 317 incidents and attacks have been carried out by the YPG/PKK terrorist group in areas of Türkiye's counterterrorism operations, and 926 terrorists have been "neutralised" with the immediate response of Turkish soldiers, according to the official.