PKK raids construction site, burns 10 vehicles in southeastern Turkey

ŞIRNAK - Doğan News Agency

Seven trucks, one dozer, one excavator and one fuel tanker were driven toward a hill before being burnt. DHA photo

Around 15 militants of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) burnt 10 vehicles today at a construction area on the highway connecting the eastern provinces of Şırnak and Van, reportedly because the road was being designed for military purposes.

Around 15 armed PKK members raided the jobsite, seven kilometers away from the Şırnak city center, which is being used during the construction of a highway between Van and Şırnak.

Seven trucks, one dozer, one excavator and one fuel tanker were driven toward a hill before being burnt.
Atila Bilgin, an official with the private company who works at the site, said he had bought the vehicles with a loan from the bank and had not yet paid off his debt.

A worker who declined to give his name said the PKK militants told them that they had been instructed by their superiors to burn all vehicles on the grounds that the road would be used for military, rather than civilian, purposes.

An operation has been launched to capture the militants who escaped after the raid.