US removes PYD/YPG from annual terrorism report

The US State Department omitted the PYD/YPG terrorist group from its 2017 Country Reports on Terrorism, which was released on Wednesday.

The previous edition of the report noted that Turkey views the Syria-based PYD/YPG as an extension of the PKK militant group, which the US, Turkey and the EU list as a terrorist organisation.

The report also said that Turkey refers to Fetullah Gulen as the leader of the Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETO), but the state department described him as an “Islamic cleric."

"Turkey’s counterterrorism efforts were impacted in the aftermath of the July 2016 coup attempt due to the government’s investigation of FETO," it said.

The report said Turkey was continuing its intensive efforts to defeat terrorist organisations both inside and outside its borders, including the PKK and Daesh terror groups.