March 19, 2018•Update: March 19, 2018
ANKARA
Twenty-one terrorists were "neutralized" in counter-terrorism operations across Turkey between March 12 and 19, said the Interior Ministry on Monday.
The ministry said in a statement that security forces had carried out 1,171 counter-terrorism operations in the past week.
Turkish authorities often use the word "neutralized" in their statements to imply that the terrorists in question either surrendered or were killed or captured.
The ministry specified that 13 of the neutralized terrorists were killed and two were captured while six surrendered to authorities.
During the operations, 536 people were also arrested for aiding and abetting the PKK terrorist group, and 39 others for their suspected links to the Daesh terrorist group. Another 537 people were arrested for suspected links to the Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETO), and two others for links to leftist terrorist groups.
FETO and its U.S.-based leader Fetullah Gulen are responsible for the July 2016 defeated coup, which martyred 250 people and injured some 2,200, as well as a longstanding plot to infiltrate and undermine the government.
In addition, 576 kilograms (nearly 1,270 pounds) of explosive ordnance, 111 hand grenades, 53 weapons, and some 10,477 pieces of ammunition were seized in nationwide counter-terrorist operations, said the ministry.
In operations across the southeastern and eastern provinces of Mardin, Sirnak, Mus, Tunceli, Hakkari, Siirt, Bitlis, Diyarbakir, as well as the southern Kahramanmaras province, 76 terrorist hideouts were also destroyed.
Security forces also arrested 1,114 suspects for crimes related to terrorism, and 100 others for organized migrant trafficking crimes.
After examining 544 social media accounts, the Turkish police’s cybercrime division launched legal proceedings against 297 suspects.
Anti-drug, contraband operations
Additionally, a total of 3,896 anti-drug and -contraband operations were carried out, during which 5,110 suspects were captured, according to the statement.
The raids led to the seizure of 455 kg (1003 lbs.) of marijuana, 176 kg (388 lbs.) of heroin, some 1.24 million pills or other forms of other illegal drugs, and nearly 174 tons and 731 liters (161 gallons) of smuggled oil.
Reporting by Cankut Tasdan:Writing by Kubra Chohan
