Five PKK terrorists killed in eastern Turkey

At least five terrorists were killed in anti-PKK operations in Turkey’s eastern and southeastern provinces, according to local government and military sources on Monday.

Van Governor’s Office said three terrorists were “neutralized” in the eastern province of Van after an attack on the Şırnak-Van highway by the PKK killed two road workers on Sunday.

Turkish authorities often use the word "neutralized" in their statements to imply the terrorists in question were killed or sometimes captured.

Monday’s statement added security forces seized two long-barreled rifles, a rocket launcher, four hand grenades as well as a handheld radio.

Meanwhile, the Turkish military said two terrorists who managed to escape an air operation in the southeastern province of Mardin’s Dargecit district, were later “neutralized” in neighboring Şırnak.

The two had been part of a PKK group which the Turkish General Staff said had been preparing to attack security forces in Mardin on Sunday.

Five of the group were killed and the two who escaped were later located and “neutralized", the military added.

In a separate incident, two Turkish soldiers were injured in an ambush carried out by the PKK, Van provincial governor’s office said on Monday.

A roadside bomb exploded as a military vehicle passed through the Baskale district of eastern Van; the troops then came under rocket attack.

One of the injured soldiers is in a critical condition, the statement added.

An air-supported operation against the PKK was launched, it went on to say.

The PKK is listed as a terror organization by Turkey, the U.S. and the EU.

More than 1,200 victims, including security personnel and civilians, have lost their lives in PKK attacks in Turkey since the terror group resumed its decades-old campaign in July 2015.