Seven Turkish soldiers killed in two PKK attacks in southeast Turkey

Two attacks claimed by the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) militants have killed six Turkish army soldiers in southeast of the country.

Security sources said Sunday that the first attacked killed five soldiers who were traveling in Hakkari Province when a roadside bomb ripped through their military vehicle.

They said PKK militants had planted the bomb on a road along the border with Iraq.

The Turkish army declared an alert for border units while an air-backed operation was launched to find those responsible.

State-run Anadolu agency quoted other military sources as saying that “PKK terrorists” were behind the attack.

In a separate development, Kurdish militants conducted a car bomb attack against a military outpost in the Ercis district of Van province in southeast Turkey, in which one soldier lost his life along with a member of the village guard, Anadolu agency reported.

At least 15 people were injured including 10 soldiers and five village guards during the second attack. Among those wounded, one was seriously injured in the mainly Kurdish province, AFP quoted a Turkish army statement as saying.

Southeastern Turkey has been the scene of deadly fighting between Kurdish militants and the military over the past months. The fighting escalated after Turkey declared the collapse of years-long peace negotiations with the Kurds last year and began imposing restrictions in Kurdish-dominated areas.

Ankara has also intensified attacks on alleged PKK positions in Iraq and Syria, further deepening the unrest inside its territories. The PKK, which mainly operates in the mountainous regions of Iraq, has claimed responsibility for a number of deadly attacks in major Turkish cities over the past months.

Turkey says it has managed to kill thousands of PKK militants in its massive operations in the southeast. Many challenge the figure, saying many of those killed were civilians. Official figures says around 600 Turkish soldiers, police forces and village guards have also been killed since the fighting flared up in July 2015.

Three people, including two soldiers died on Saturday after PKK militants carried out a car bomb attack on a military outpost in southeast Turkey and then opened fire on the facility. The car bombing which targeted the Cevizlik village outpost in Mardin province also injured 23 more soldiers.

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