Turkish security forces neutralise armed terrorists in southeastern area

Turkish Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya has said that security forces have neutralised two terrorists in the southeastern province of Mardin.

Yerlikaya said on December 4 that during an operation the security forces tracked the two terrorists who blew themselves up in a vehicle, according to TRT World.

The minister reported, "As our armoured vehicles approached the vehicle believed to be carrying terrorists, gunfire erupted from within the vehicle. Subsequently, realising they could not escape, the two terrorists detonated explosives, ending their own lives."

Orhan Elma, codenamed Rodi Hayri, was in the red category of Türkiye's wanted list, Yerlikaya said, adding efforts to identify the second terrorist are ongoing.

The identity of the second terrorist is currently under investigation.

The wanted list is divided into five colour-coded categories, with red as the most wanted, followed by blue, green, orange, and grey.

It was revealed that the incapacitated terrorist, Orhan Elma, had orchestrated four separate attacks, leading to the death of five people, including two security personnel, and injuries to several others.

Turkish authorities use the term "neutralise" to imply that the terrorists in question surrendered or were killed or captured.

In its more than 35-year terror campaign against Türkiye, the PKK – listed as a terrorist organisation by Türkiye, the US, and EU – has been responsible for the deaths of over 40,000 people, including women, children, and infants. The YPG is its Syrian branch.