High-ranking PKK terrorist killed in southeast

A senior PKK terrorist was killed along with three other members of the terror group in Turkey's southeastern Diyarbakır province on Nov. 1, the Interior Ministry announced late Thursday.

İlyas Karakoç, who was using the code name "Baran-Amed-Kino," was on the Interior Ministry's most wanted list and a TL 300,000 ($55,000) reward had been placed on his head. Karakoç was on the grey list of wanted fugitives.

The wanted list is divided into five color-coded categories, with red marking the most wanted, followed by blue, green, orange and grey, depending on the sensitivity of their criminal activity.

As part of the security operation, three other terrorists were also killed. In addition, three other terrorists were captured alive in Diyarbakır's Dicle district as they were preparing to conduct terror acts in major cities, the ministry's statement also said. Fourteen shelters belonging to the terror group were identified and ammunition depots were destroyed, while other armaments and documents were recovered, the statement added.

Meanwhile, an explosives-laden vehicle in eastern Turkey's Malatya province was also captured. The explosive substance and the bomb setup were impounded, and the driver of the vehicle was detained.

As part of ongoing operations against the PKK, a group considered a terrorist organization by the U.S., the EU and Turkey, security forces also seized another explosive-laden vehicle in southeastern Mardin province Wednesday and a suicide-bomber preparing to carrying out attacks in southeastern Gaziantep province.