At least 1,951 terrorists have been "neutralized" in northwestern Syria's Afrin since Operation Olive Branch was launched on Jan. 20, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said Saturday.
Erdoğan announced the latest number of terrorists killed at a provincial congress of the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party) in Turkey's southern Osmaniye province.
782 terrorist targets have also been destroyed since the start of the operation, the military said.
The Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) uses the term "neutralized" in reference to terrorists captured dead or alive, or those who surrendered during the operations. However, the term is usually used for the terrorists who were killed in the operations.
Turkish forces and Free Syrian Army (FSA) also liberated two more villages from YPG/PKK-Daesh terrorists Saturday as part of the Operation Olive Branch in Afrin.
The villages of Abu Kab and Hacılar in the Jinderes area, located southwest of Afrin, have been cleared of all the terrorists, Anadolu Agency's correspondents in the field reported.
Later on Saturday in his address in Turkey's Kahramanmaraş, President Erdoğan said that Turkey will continue to make terrorists and the powers behind them pay for their cruelty and oppression.
Since the launch of the operation, Turkish military and the FSA liberated 103 locations including one center of a district, 75 villages, 20 strategic mountains and hills and one YPG/PKK-Daesh base.
Since the operation began on Jan. 20, the Turkish military and the FSA liberated 97 targets -- including one of Afrin district's five towns -- plus 69 villages, 20 strategic mountains and hills, and one YPG/PKK-Daesh base.
Addressing the ruling Justice and Development Party's (AK Party) provincial chairs in Ankara, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said that 415 square kilometers of land have been brought under control.
The TSK along with the FSA launched Operation Olive Branch in Afrin targeting the PKK terror group's Syrian affiliates the Democratic Union Party (PYD) and its armed wing the People's Protection Units (YPG) as well as remaining Daesh elements in the region.
The military also said only terror targets are being destroyed and "utmost care" is being taken to avoid harming civilians.