Twin PKK attacks kill eight in Turkey's southeast

DİYARBAKIR / MARDİN

DHA photo

Eight people, including police officers, were killed and several others injured on Aug. 10 in two separate bomb attacks by the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) in southeastern Turkey, according to the country's transport minister.        

At least three people, including one police officer, were killed and 30 others, including five police officers, were injured when a handmade roadside explosive was detonated by PKK militants as a police vehicle was passing by in the Kızıltepe district of the southeastern Mardin province, Transport Minister Ahmet Arslan said.        

PKK also carried out a separate attack in the Sur district of the southeastern province of Diyarbakır on Aug. 10, targeting another police vehicle.        

Five civilians were killed and 12 people, including five police officers, were injured during the bomb attack, according to a statement by the governor's office. A bomb-laden car was used in the attack, the statement added.        

Meanwhile, the U.S. "strongly" denounced the attacks with Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter calling them "despicable" in a statement.        

"With these attacks, we are reminded of the remarkable bravery and self-sacrifice that allied security personnel demonstrate every day in the fight against terrorism," Carter said.

"The United States remains committed to cooperating closely with Turkey - bilaterally, within the counter-ISIL coalition, and within NATO - in order to defend our nations against common threats," he added.