Nineteen fighters from the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) were killed in a drone strike during an operation in the southeastern province of Sirnak early on Thursday, November 10, Anadolu Agency reports citing the Turkish army.

In a statement, the army said the militants were killed in an aerial drone-backed operation in the Bestler-Dereler region near Sirnak. The operation was launched to frustrate the fighters’ anticipated preparations for winter.

One PKK member was captured alive and seven bodies of others left from previous operations were also identified, it added.

During the operation, military units confiscated and destroyed explosives, guns, artillery, medical supplies, and ammunition stores in caves, it said.