ANKARA, July 30 (Xinhua) -- Turkish security forces killed 12 members of the Syrian Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) in northwestern Syria, the Turkish Defense Ministry said on Sunday.
The YPG members were "neutralized" after they opened "harassing fire" on the Operation Euphrates Shield zone of the Turkish military, the ministry said in a statement.
Turkish authorities often use the term "neutralized" in their statements to imply the "terrorists" in question surrendered or were killed or captured.
Türkiye sees the YPG group as the Syrian branch of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK).
The Turkish army launched Operation Euphrates Shield in 2016 in northern Syria as part of the efforts to create a YPG-free zone along its border in the neighboring country.
The PKK, listed as a terrorist organization by Türkiye, the United States and the European Union, has been rebelling against the Turkish government for more than 30 years.
