ANKARA, Sept. 27 (Xinhua) -- The Turkish forces have "neutralized" 22 "terrorists" in operations in northern Iraq and northern Syria, the country's Defense Ministry said on Friday.

Twenty-one members of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) were "neutralized" in the Gara and Asos regions of northern Iraq, the ministry said in a statement, adding one more "terrorist" belonging to the PKK's Syrian branch, the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG), was killed in northern Syria's "Operation Euphrates Shield" region. The ministry did not specify the exact dates of the operations.

The Turkish army launched Operation Euphrates Shield in 2016, Operation Olive Branch in 2018, Operation Peace Spring in 2019, and Operation Spring Shield in 2020 in northern Syria to create a YPG-free zone along the Turkish border within the neighboring country.

The PKK, listed as a terrorist organization by Türkiye, the United States, and the European Union, has been rebelling against the Turkish government for more than three decades.

Turkish authorities often use the term "neutralized" in their statements to imply the alleged "terrorists" have either surrendered, been killed, or been captured. Enditem

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