Turkey neutralizes over 4,150 terrorists in Afrin

By Sinan Uslu

ANKARA

A total of 4,157 terrorists have been “neutralized” since the start of the Turkey-led Operation Olive Branch in Syria's Afrin region, according to the Turkish military on Saturday.

In a weekly statement, the Turkish General Staff said 52 Turkish soldiers had also been martyred while 232 others were injured during the Afrin operation.

Also, 107 mines and 781 improvised explosives were destroyed in the operation.

Turkey on Jan. 20 launched Operation Olive Branch to remove YPG/PKK and Daesh terrorists from Afrin. On March 18, Turkish troops and Free Syrian Army liberated the Afrin district center.

According to the Turkish General Staff, the operation aims to establish security and stability along Turkey’s borders and the region as well as to protect Syrians from the oppression and cruelty of terrorists.

The Turkish army also said it had neutralized 67 terrorists during anti-terror operations in eastern Turkish provinces of Tunceli, Diyarbakir and Sirnak, and in northern Iraq between April 7 and April 13; 27 of the terrorists were neutralized inside the country while 40 others were neutralized abroad. A senior figure is among the neutralized terrorists, it added.

During the anti-terror operations, 44 arms including infantry rifles, snipers and machine guns were seized while 84 improvised explosives, 47 weapon emplacements, shelters, caves and depots were also destroyed.

The statement also said two soldiers were martyred and 10 others were injured within this period.

In its more than 30-year terror campaign against Turkey, the PKK -- listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the U.S. and the EU -- has been responsible for the death of some 40,000 people.

The PYD/YPG are Syrian branches of the terrorist PKK and the focus of Turkey's successful counter-terrorist Operation Olive Branch in Afrin, Syria, near the border with Turkey.