Ankara, Aug 3 (IANS): Turkish security forces killed three militants of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) in northern Iraq's Zap region, the military said.

This was part of the ongoing Operation Claw-Lock by the Turkish armed forces in northern Iraq, according to a Turkish Defence Ministry statement on Wednesday.

In January, the Ministry said Turkey wiped out almost all PKK militants in the Zap region, adding 506 PKK militants had been eliminated since the cross-border Operation Claw-Lock against the PKK militants was launched in April 2022, Xinhua news agency reported.

Turkish security forces have recently intensified cross-border operations against the PKK in northern Iraq, particularly in the Qandil Mountains, the main base of the group, and killed several senior PKK cadres.

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