Ankara, Aug 12 : Turkish security forces killed at least 12 members of the Syrian Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) in northern Syria, Turkey's Defence Ministry said. In a statement, the Ministry said on Friday that the Turkish armed forces "neutralised" the YPG members when they were "preparing for an attack" in northern Syria. Turkish authorities often use the term "neutralised" in their statements to imply the surrender or death of terrorists, Xinhua news agency reported. The Ministry's statement, released on X, the social media platform previously known as Twitter, was accompanied by drone footage of several targets being struck in the region. The Ministry said that with the latest operation, the number of "terrorists" eliminated since Thursday in the northern regions of Turkey's neighbouring Syria and Iraq has reached 21. Türkiye has retaliated against the YPG's killing of six of its soldiers this week by launching operations in the two neighbouring countries, where the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) and its Syrian branch YPG are hiding. 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. /IANS