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3 PKK fighters killed in clashes in eastern Turkey

Xinhua, August 13, 2015 Adjust font size:

Three members of the banned Kurdish Workers' Party (PKK) were killed in clashes with the Turkish security forces in eastern Turkey late Wednesday, private Dogan news agency reported on Thursday.

A group of PKK operatives attacked a gendarmerie station of the Turkish security forces in Diyadin town of Agri province, said the report, adding that the military killed three Kurdish militants in the fire exchanges.

The Turkish security forces have launched a large-scale operation against the PKK rebels in the region, added the report.

A Turkish soldier was killed and four soldiers and one village guard wounded in an attack against a gendarmerie station by the PKK militants in Diyarbakir province of southeastern Turkey on Wednesday, private Dogan news agency reported.

Tensions between the PKK and Turkish security forces are increasing following a tumultuous week which began with an Islamic State (IS) suicide bombing July 20, killing 32 individuals and injuring 104 activists in the town of Suruc in the Sanliurfa province bordering Syria.

The People's Defense Forces, affiliated with the PKK, claimed responsibility for the death of the two police officers as retaliation to the Suruc bombing, insinuating that the officers were linked to IS.

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