Türkiye’s National Intelligence Organization (MIT) on Tuesday destroyed 12 trucks, two tanks and two ammunition depots the PKK/YPG terrorists seized from the former regime in Syria’s Qamishli province, just days after the fall of Bashar Assad.
According to Turkish security sources, MIT tracked the transfer of missiles, heavy weapons and ammunition left behind by the Assad regime, which the terrorist group had moved into their own storage facilities.
The intelligence agency discovered that the terrorists were using the cover of darkness to load the weapons onto trucks and then transport them in a convoy.
In a counterterrorism operation, MIT destroyed the weapons, which included missiles, heavy artillery and ammunition, along with two depots that had been taken by the terrorist group.
Following the Nov. 27 outbreak of clashes between anti-regime groups and Assad regime forces, Bashar Assad and his family fled to Russia on Sunday after anti-regime groups took control of the capital, Damascus, marking the collapse of the Baath Party regime, which had been in power in Syria since 1963.
In the wake of the Assad regime's collapse, PKK/YPG terrorists are seeking to exploit the unclear security situation and power vacuum in some areas.
In its 40-year terror campaign against Türkiye, the PKK – listed as a terrorist organization by Türkiye, the U.S. and the EU – has been responsible for the deaths of over 40,000 people, including women, children, infants and the elderly.
The YPG is the PKK's offshoot in Syria, an area where, for years, the group has tried to establish a terrorist corridor along the Turkish border.
In recent years, Türkiye has deployed troops and worked with local allies such as the opposition Syrian National Army (SNA) to prevent this and keep locals safe from terrorist oppression.