The Turkish Defence Ministry stated on Friday that the first officer had been killed during the country’s ongoing military offensive operation in northeastern Syria.
“Our comrade died on 10 October during Operation Peace Spring in clashes with terrorists (PKK-YPG) of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party – Syrian-Kurdish Self-Defence Forces”, Defence Minister Hulusi Akar said in a statement.
The ministry also reported that the number of the “PKK-YPG terrorists” neutralised during the operation reached 277. On Thursday, the Turkish military said that it had struck 181 Kurdish targets in the course of its offensive and had killed at least 219 PKK-YPG fighters.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced the beginning of the so-called Operation Peace Spring Wednesday with an eye to creating a safe zone near the Syrian-Turkish border, clearing up “terrorists” and ensuring a safe return for the Syrian refugees currently hosted in Turkey.
The territory on the Syrian side of the border is currently controlled by the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), which Ankara considers to be affiliated with the PKK, listed as a terrorist organisation in Turkey.
Source: Sputnik
