Policemen killed in Turkey attack
Two policemen have been killed overnight in predominantly Kurdish southeastern Turkey, the latest example of mounting unrest in the region.
One of the policemen was killed when two suspected fighters from the rebel Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) opened fire on a police station in Van city, also leaving three officers injured, local security chief Cemil Zafer told Anatolia news agency on Sunday.
In a separate incident, a policeman was killed and another injured in the city of Sanliurfa when unidentified assailants opened fire on a police vehicle on patrol in the city.
PKK campaign
Sanliurfa police chief Kutluay Celik told Anatolia the authorities were still investigating the incident, but added that it “does not seem to be a terrorist attack”, according to initial assessments.
The PKK, considered a terrorist organisation by Ankara as well as the United States and the European Union, has waged a bloody separatist campaign in Turkey’s eastern and southeastern provinces since 1984, with the conflict claiming about 37,000 lives.
Unrest in the region has markedly escalated over the past several months after the PKK called off a five-year unilateral ceasefire in June 2004.
Last month, the group declared a one-month truce until 20 September, but the army brushed aside the move and clashes in the region continue.