14 PKK terrorists killed in Turkey

Turkish warplanes struck several terrorist Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) targets in rural areas of the southeastern province of Hakkari on Thursday evening, killing 14 terrorists and a special sergeant, in tandem with a ground operation that followed the air bombardment, security sources say.

Security officials obtained intelligence about gatherings of the terrorist group in several high plateaus in the region, including the Avashin, Habeshki and Basyan plateaus. Security forces, backed up by attack helicopters, launched a ground operation targeting several locations, Todays Zaman reported.

Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) pinpointed the positions of the groups and delivered images to the ground station, following which Turkish jets struck the sites before the ground operation took place.

Authorities said 14 terrorists were killed, while a special sergeant, identified as Seyit Yalch?n, lost his life following the air strikes and clashes. Yalch?n died while receiving treatment for his injuries at the Yuksekova State Hospital.

Meanwhile, the state-owned Turkish Radio and Television Corporation (TRT) reported on Friday that nine PKK terrorists were killed as part of an ongoing operation that was launched six days ago in the Kavakl? region, near Hakkari province.

In a related development, the Diyarbak?r 7th High Criminal Court handed down an aggravated life sentence to an accused in the ongoing investigation into the Kurdish Communities Union (KCK) -- an umbrella political organization including the terrorist PKK -- during a hearing on Thursday.


/Trend/