Turkey "neutralized" at least 24 members of Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) in northern Syria after a Turkish soldier was killed in a missile attack in the area, the defense ministry said Wednesday.

Ankara sees the YPG as the Syrian branch of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), which is listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey and has been rebelling against the Turkish government for more than three decades.

Tension between the YPG and Turkish military quickened after the YPG attacked a police checkpoint in Mare settlement in the Operation Euphrates Shield zone with anti-tank weapons on April 22, killing one Turkish police officer.

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.

The operations aim to eliminate terror threats against Turkey and provide a safe zone that will facilitate the return of Syrian refugees to their homes, it said.

(With input from Xinhua)