Turkish security forces carried out a new round of operations against the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) banned in the country after Sunday’s terror attack in Ankara.
At least 67 suspects were apprehended in the early hours of Tuesday in operations against the PKK. Turkish Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya announced that security forces conducted 466 operations against the group as of Tuesday morning, Sabah reported.
The operations were concentrated in Şanlıurfa, a province in southeastern Türkiye. Some 55 suspects were detained in operations, which was the culmination of an investigation by the Chief Prosecutor’s Office in the province in coordination with the National Intelligence Organization (MIT) and police.
They conducted simultaneous raids in 18 provinces. Suspects captured in operations were under MIT surveillance for about 10 months. The intelligence units sought to crack down on what PKK called its “military intelligence unit.” MIT placed several names under surveillance in Türkiye, Iraq’s north and Syria before the operations.
Operations were carried out in Istanbul, Antalya, Adana, Bursa, Diyarbakır, Gaziantep, Mardin, Mersin, Denizli, Konya, Kayseri, Batman, Isparta, Balıkesir, Şırnak, Kocaeli and Amasya.
In a social media post on Tuesday, Minister Yerlikaya said that some 13,440 security personnel were involved in 466 counterterrorism operations at the moment as part of a nationwide operation entitled “Heroes.” He said 12 suspects had been captured so far in Mersin, Van, Şanlıurfa, Mardin and Aydın.
