Baku, Azerbaijan, Nov. 27
By Rufiz Hafizoglu - Trend:
As part of an operation conducted against the PKK terrorist organization on Nov. 21-27, 544 people were detained, Turkish Ministry of Internal Affairs said in a message on Nov. 27.
During the period, 480 raids were carried out in Turkey, the message read.
The largest number of detentions were recorded in the Van province (42 people) and in Ankara (24 people).
On Nov. 15, Turkish Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu stated that from early 2018, 87,838 operations have been carried out against the PKK terrorist organization in Turkey.
Soylu noted that 289 PKK terrorists were killed during the operations.
The minister also noted that in 2017, the PKK terrorists planned 965 attacks, while this figure dropped to 677 in 2018.
"In 2017, 380 PKK terrorists and in 2018, 343 terrorists surrendered to Turkish law enforcement agencies," Soylu said.
The conflict between Turkey and the PKK, which demands the creation of an independent Kurdish state, has lasted more than 25 years, claiming more than 40,000 lives. PKK is recognized as a terrorist organization by the UN and the EU.
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