Turkish Security Forces Conducted Around 12,000 Operations Against Kurds in 2019

Turkish security forces conducted a total of 12,382 major and minor operations against the PKK (Kurdistan Workers' Party), deemed a terrorist organization, during the first half of 2019. This was announced by Turkey's Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu, as reported by ermenihaber.

“We carried out 23 large-scale, 245 medium-sized, and 12,114 smaller operations during the spring-summer period of this year. The number of operations has increased by 87% compared to last year,” Soylu detailed, noting that they have commenced a series of autumn-winter operations.

According to the minister, since the beginning of the year, 108 senior members of the PKK have been killed. Soylu also provided information about the four-phase operation named “Kıran,” which began on August 17 and covers various regions of Turkey (the fourth phase is being conducted in the provinces of Kars, Iğdır, and Ağrı, bordering Armenia). According to the minister, during this operation, 63 Kurdish militants were killed, and 68 caves and shelters used by them were destroyed.