Four killed in PKK attacks in Turkey’s southeast

ANKARA – Anadolu Agency

DHA photo

Two soldiers, a police officer and a civilian were killed on Sept. 29 in separate attacks by the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) in the southeastern provinces of Hakkari and Batman.

The Turkish army was conducting an operation to defuse an improvised explosive device placed on Hakkari’s Tuhi Bridge located on the Yüksekova-Şemdinli highway at around 4:45 p.m. on Sept. 29.

An armored car dispatched to the area to secure the bomb squad was targeted in the attack as an explosive planted under the bridge was detonated as the army vehicle was passing. 

Two soldiers were killed in the attack while three others were injured. 

“Our injured fellow soldiers were immediately taken to hospital and received medical treatment,” read a statement from the military, adding that an air-backed operation was under way in the region.

The identities of the soldiers involved were not released.

In a separate incident, PKK militants launched a bomb attack in Turkey’s southeastern province of Batman, killing a police officer and a truck driver, while also injuring three officers and five civilians.

The militants detonated an explosive as a police vehicle was proceeding along the Batman-Kozluk highway.

The deceased policeman was not identified because his family had not yet been informed of his death at the time. The truck driver was named as 55-year-old Hamdullah Aydın.

The road was closed to traffic while security forces launched an operation to apprehend the perpetrators.