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Turkish soldier killed in PKK attack

Xinhua, August 11, 2015 Adjust font size:

One soldier of the Turkish security forces was killed in an attack by the militants of the outlawed Kurdish Workers' Party (PKK) in southeastern Turkey on Tuesday, a military statement said.

A group of PKK members staged the attack against a military basein Sirnak province early Tuesday, leaving one Turkish soldier seriously wounded, said the statement issued by the Turkish Armed Forces, adding that the injured soldier died in Sirnak Military Hospital.

On Monday, four Turkish police officers were killed, one heavily injured in landmine attack by the PKK militants Sirnak province in southeastern Turkey, private Dogan News Agency reported.

The PKK is the suspect for roadside landmine explosion which killed four officers in a car in Silopi town of Sirnak province bordering Iraq, the report said.

Also on Monday, one Turkish soldier was killed, seven others wounded as the PKK opened fire on a military helicopter in Beytussebap town of the southeastern Sirnak province, the Turkish Armed Forces said in a written statement.

The attacks came on the same day when twin attacks hit Turkey's megacity Istanbul. Two attackers opened fire on the U.S. consulate building. One injured woman attacker was captured.

Also on Monday, one police officer and two assailants were killed in a car bomb attack against a police station in Sultanbeyli district, Asian side of Istanbul, local broadcaster CNNTurk reported.

Tension between the PKK and Turkish security forces has been mounting following a tumultuous week that began with an Islamic State (IS) suicide bomb, which killed 32 and injured 104 activists in the town of Suruc in Sanliurfa province bordering Syria.

The People's Defense Forces (HPG), affiliated with the PKK, claimed responsibility for killing two police officers in retaliation to the Suruc bombing, suggesting that the policemen were linked to the IS.

Turkish security forces have detained over 1,300 individuals with suspected links to IS, PKK and leftist groups, according to a statement by the Turkish prime minister's office, as the military unleashed several airstrikes on PKK positions in northern Iraq.

Renewed conflicts led to the suspension of the peace process launched in 2012 between the Turkish state and the imprisoned PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan.

Some 40,000 have been killed since 1984, when the armed group launched its first attack. Endite