Security forces in southeastern Turkey's Diyarbakır have seized over 300 kilograms (661.39 pounds) of marijuana, officials said on Tuesday. Four suspects were arrested in connection with the drug haul.

Acting on a tip-off, the local gendarmerie forces carried out a counternarcotics operation in Diyarbakır's Hani district on April 13, the provincial governorate said in a statement.

It added that the marijuana was found in a car flagged for a check. It tried to flee but was eventually stopped. A thorough search of the car led to the recovery of 305 kilograms of marijuana and an unlicensed gun.

It was not clear whether the seizure is linked to the PKK, the terrorist group which is the main culprit behind the cultivation, sale and smuggling of drugs in the region.

Security forces frequently carry out operations against PKK-linked cannabis cultivation areas in rural Diyarbakır.

The PKK is accused of smuggling drugs to and from Europe as well as cultivating cannabis in southeastern Turkey as a way to fund its illegal activities.

A Turkish police report released last year said the terrorist group produces heroin in laboratories in its camps in northern Iraq and sells it to Europe.

In its production process, the PKK terrorist organization forces civilians to produce cannabis roots in the eastern and southeastern provinces of Turkey and uses that money to fund terrorist activities.