PKK roadside bomb kills six soldiers in Turkey's Van

VAN

Six soldiers have been killed while two others have been wounded, after outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) militants detonated a roadside bomb during the passage of an armored military vehicle in the Çaldıran district of the eastern province of Van.

PKK militants detonated an improvised explosive device concealed under a road while a military vehicle was passing at 5 p.m. on May 24.

According to a statement by the Turkish Armed Forces, the blast hit 10 cargo trucks as the vehicle was en route to intervene in an incident on the road stretching between Çaldıran and the Doğubayazıt district of Ağrı province. 

The explosion led to the death of six soldiers, including a senior major. 

Gendarmerie Senior Major Kıvanç Cesur, Gendarmerie Master Sergeant Murat Demirci, Gendarmerie Sergeant First Class İbrahim Tıraş, Specialist Gendarme Sergeant Murat Sarıgül, Gendarmerie Specialized Sergeant Emre Türkmen and Gendarmerie Specialized Sergeant Ferdullah Kaykusuz were killed in the blast, according to the army.

Two separate funeral ceremonies were held in Van for the soldiers, before their coffins were sent to their hometowns across the country.
 

25 PKK militants surrender

Meanwhile, 25 PKK militants surrendered to security forces amid ongoing operations in the Nusaybin district of the southeastern province of Mardin on May 24. 

The 25 militants surrendered after reportedly being cornered in the district’s Fırat neighborhood.

According to reports, initially only one militant surrendered and she later convinced 24 others to follow. The interrogation of the 25 suspects, the largest number ever to surrender in Nusaybin, are expected to continue for four days – the maximum detention period permitted by law.