SIIRT (CIHAN) - Two Turkish soldiers were killed and nine others injured on Tuesday in a skirmish between Turkish troops and militants of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party, PKK/Kongra-Gel. in the southeastern Turkish city of Siirt.
Two soldiers were killed in an ambush set up by the PKK militants while the troops were traveling in a military vehicle. A PKK terrorist was also killed in the same incident that took place in the town of Eruh.
Security officers have launched an intensive military operation in the region.
Terrorist attacks by the PKK have increased recently in the southeastern region of Turkey following the ending of the unilateral PKK/KONGRA-GEL ceasefire on June 1, which had lasted six years. Last month, nearly 20 security officers died while 38 rebels were killed in clashes.
A few hundred PKK terrorists are believed to be active in eastern Turkey. However, intelligence sources say that many more PKK militants, up to 1,500, have infiltrated Turkey from neighboring Iraq in recent weeks.
The separatist activities of the outlawed PKK/KADEK terrorist organization claimed nearly 30,000 lives in the region up to the late nineties. However, the activities of the organization dropped off sharply following the capture of leader Abdullah Öcalan in February 1999.