Two more YPG/PKK terrorists have surrendered to security forces near the Turkey-Syria border, National Defense Ministry said Sunday.
In a statement, the defense ministry said the militants had fled the terrorist group’s hideouts in Syria and surrendered to Turkish security forces at a border post in the Suruç district of southeastern Turkey's Şanlıurfa.
The statement did not reveal the identity of the terrorists.
There has been a surge in the number of terrorists laying down arms and surrendering to Turkish security forces, after a series of successful domestic and cross-border anti-terror operations. More than 40 terrorists have surrendered to Turkish forces since the beginning of 2020.
The surrendered terrorists include individuals whose parents have been participating in a demonstration in front of the pro-PKK Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) Diyarbakır headquarters, demanding the return of their children kidnapped by the terrorist group.
Nine families, whose children were kidnapped by the terrorist group, have been reunited with their sons and daughters.
Many terrorists lack the courage to leave the group because they would face severe punishment if caught.
In its more than four-decade-long terror campaign against Turkey, the PKK – listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the U.S. and the EU – has been responsible for the deaths of nearly 40,000 people, including women and children. The YPG is the PKK's Syrian offshoot.
The Interior Ministry in a Nov. 26 statement said that the dissolution of the PKK has been accelerated due to Turkey's successful counterterrorism operations and strategies both at home and abroad.
The statement said a significant number of terrorists have fled the PKK and surrendered. More than 235 terrorists have surrendered to Turkish security forces in 2019 alone.
Once the terrorists surrender, they are provided with many opportunities, including the right to education and the freedom to live without fear and oppression.
They are not ill-treated, can contact their families freely and are provided with essential judicial assistance. The Turkish state offers a variety of services to ensure their social reintegration.
According to some former terrorists, the PKK ringleaders risk the lives of others to save their own and threaten those planning to surrender with torture.
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