ANKARA (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 11th October, 2019) Turkey has neutralized 219 members of the Kurdistan Workers' Party - People's Protection Units (PKK-YPG) in the framework of its Operation Peace Spring in northern Syria, the Turkish Defense Ministry said on Friday.
The military said on Thursday that it had killed 174 members of the Kurdish-led forces during Ankara's Syria offensive.
"The overall number of PKK-YPG terrorists who were neutralized during the successfully ongoing Operation Peace Spring to the east of the Euphrates is 219 people," the ministry said in a statement.
Operation Peace Spring was launched on Wednesday and is aimed at creating the so-called safe zone near the Syrian-Turkish border. The territory on the Syrian side of the border is currently controlled by the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), which Ankara believes are affiliated with the PKK, just like the YPG.
The Turkish military said on Thursday that it had struck 181 Kurdish targets in the course of its offensive.
Meanwhile, local media have reported about civilian casualties inflicted by the operation.
