ANKARA, Oct. 17 (Xinhua) -- Turkish security forces killed six members of the Syrian Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) in northern Syria, the Turkish defense ministry said on Saturday.

"Six YPG/PKK terrorists, who opened harassing fire at the Operation Euphrates Shield zone and attempted to infiltrate, have been neutralized by our heroic commandos," 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.

Turkey sees the YPG group as the Syrian branch of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK). The Turkish army launched Operation Euphrates Shield in 2016, Operation Olive Branch in 2018, Operation Peace Spring in 2019, and Operation Spring Shield in 2020 in northern Syria in order to create a YPG-free zone along its border within the neighboring country.

The PKK, listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the United States, and the EU, has been rebelling against the Turkish government for over 30 years, which has claimed the lives of more than 40,000 people. Enditem

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