Two police officers killed in PKK attacks in Turkey’s east

BİNGÖL

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Two police officers were killed and nine people were wounded in an outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) attack late on Oct. 22 in the eastern province of Bingöl, state-run Anadolu Agency has reported.        
         
PKK militants detonated a bomb-laden vehicle as a police vehicle carrying officers passed by at the entrance to Bingöl, according to security sources.

A number of wounded people, including five police officers, were taken to local hospitals with non-life-threatening injuries.        
         
An operation has been launched to apprehend the militants.        
         
Meanwhile, PKK militants were “neutralized” on Oct. 22 in the eastern province of Tunceli.        
         
Security forces neutralized seven militants, including three women, in an operation backed with Turkish war jets, according to a statement.

The term “neutralized” is a euphemism used by the Turkish state to denote PKK militants that have either been killed or incapacitated in battle.

In addition, a vehicle allegedly containing a bomb and belonging to PKK militants was destroyed by attack helicopters in Tunceli’s Ovacık district.

The vehicle was reportedly carrying almost one tons of explosives, according to the Tunceli Governor’s Office.       

Moreover, the total number of militants killed has increased to 463 in operations in Hakkari, the military added.  
      
Another operation in Hakkari’s Yüksekova district -- situated on the border with Iran -- saw the military seize 30 grenades, two Dragunov sniper rifles and a machine gun.  

15 PKK militants were neutralized in another air operation conducted in Turkey’s east province of Şırnak. 

Shelters and weapon emplacements belonging to PKK militants were also destroyed by security forces.