Turkish military neutralizes 157 PKK terrorists in SE

More than 150 terrorists belonging to the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) have been rendered inoperative by the Turkish military in an ongoing operation in the southeast, according to Turkish Armed Forces (TAF).

A total of 157 members of the separatist terrorist organization were declared killed or wounded in the Çukurca district in the southeastern province of Hakkarı, the TAF said in a released statement.

It also stated a large number of ammunition, weapons, food materials, generator, and hand maid explosives were confiscated in shelters in Seni Tepe mountain tops. Some of the terrorists' bodies were also found in the shelters.

Security forces also destroyed a number of PKK positions in the area.

The Turkish military said the operation would continue from the ground and air, until the final results are obtained.

Meanwhile, the Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yıldırım had paid a surprise visit to Çukurca to boost the morale of the troops carrying out the anti-terrorist/PKK fighting.

The PKK, listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the U.S. and the EU, resumed its decades-old armed campaign in July, 2015, after a two-year cease-fire.

Since then, more than 600 security personnel have been martyred and over 7,000 PKK terrorists have been killed.