Ankara, Feb 5 (IANS): Turkish security forces "neutralised" 11 members of the Syrian Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) in northern Syria, the country's Defence Ministry said on Monday.

The YPG members were targetted while plotting an attack on Turkish soldiers in the "Operation Olive Branch" and "Operation Euphrates Shield" zones in northern Syria, the Ministry said in a statement as quoted by Xinhua news agency report.

"We continue to respond in kind to terrorist attacks," the Ministry added.

Turkish authorities often use the term "neutralise" in their statements to imply the alleged "terrorists" have either surrendered, been killed, or been captured.

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 to create a YPG-free zone along the border with the neighbouring country.

Turkey sees the YPG group as the Syrian branch of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK).

The PKK, listed as a terrorist organisation by Turkey, the US, and the European Union, has rebelled against the Turkish government for more than three decades.