ANKARA (Sputnik) — A total of eight Turkish soldiers and 11 members of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) have been killed in armed clashes in the southeastern Van province of the country, local authorities said in a statement on Saturday.
"Three officers and five sergeants were killed, eight servicemen were wounded in the Tendurek area in clashes with members of the separatist terrorist organization [PKK] on September 2. 11 militants were killed, an operation involving military aircraft continues," the statement read.
Tensions between Ankara and the Kurds escalated in July 2015 when a ceasefire between Turkey and the PKK collapsed over a series of terrorist attacks, allegedly committed by PKK members.
