Türkiye launches new anti-terror operation in eastern provinces

Turkish security forces have launched another counter-terrorism operation in the country's east, Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu said.

The operation, called the Eren Abluka Autumn Winter-18 Martyr Gendarmerie Lieutenant Hubeyib Turan, started on Saturday in the provinces of Diyarbakir, Bingol, Mus and Batman with 3,650 security personnel, Soylu said while inspecting a military base zone in Diyarbakir.

Eren Abluka Autumn Winter-18 will be the "biggest Eren operation" carried out by Turkish security forces against terrorists in the region so far, Soylu added.

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The fight against PKK

Türkiye initiated Eren operations last year, naming them after Eren Bulbul, a 15-year-old boy killed by the PKK terror group on August 11, 2017.

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

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