ANKARA, Turkiye: Turkish forces have killed the alleged mastermind behind a deadly Istanbul street bombing in an operation in northern Syria, Turkiye\u2019s state-run news agency reported.
\nThe man, identified as Halil Menci, was \u201cneutralized\u201d in an operation by Turkish intelligence agents, the agency said, without providing further details. HaberTurk television said the operation took place on Feb. 22 in the town of Qamishli.
\nThe Nov. 13 bomb attack in Istanbul\u2019s bustling Istiklal Avenue left six people dead, including two children. More than 80 others were wounded.
\nTurkish authorities blamed the attack on the outlawed Kurdistan Workers\u2019 Party, or PKK, as well as Syrian Kurdish groups affiliated with it. The Kurdish militants have denied involvement.
\nAt least 17 suspects have been jailed pending trial in connection with the attack, including a Syrian woman who is accused of leaving the TNT-laden bomb on Istiklal Avenue. Officials said at the time that the attack\u2019s planner had fled Turkiye for Syria.
\nThe PKK has fought an armed insurgency in Turkiye since 1984. The conflict has killed tens of thousands of people since then.
\nTurkiye has launched three major incursions inside Syria targeting Syria\u2019s main Kurdish militia since 2016 and controls a swath of Syrian territory along their joint border.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
ANKARA, Turkiye: Turkish forces have killed the alleged mastermind behind a deadly Istanbul street bombing in an operation in northern Syria, Turkiye\u2019s state-run news agency reported. The man, identified as Halil Menci, was \u201cneutralized\u201d in an operation by Turkish intelligence agents, the agency said, without providing further details. HaberTurk television said the operation took place […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":315805,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-315797","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n