Four Turkish Servicemen Killed in PKK Attack in Country's Southeast

Four Turkish soldiers were killed in a roadside bomb blast attributed to the Kurdistan Worker's Party, prompting a counter-terror operation.

ANKARA (Sputnik) – Four Turkish soldiers were killed and four others were injured in a roadside bomb blast staged by Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) militants on Wednesday in southeastern Turkey, the Daily Sabah, a pro-government national newspaper, said.

The explosion took place in Hakkari province, the Daily Sabah said, adding that the injured soldiers were taken to a local hospital.

A counter-terror operation was launched following the attack.

Tensions between Ankara and the Kurds escalated in July 2015 when a ceasefire between Turkey and the PKK collapsed over a series of terror attacks allegedly committed by PKK members. Turkish forces are involved in anti-PKK raids across the country. Turkey has battled Kurdish fighters both at home and in neighboring Syria and Iraq. 

The PKK is listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey and its NATO allies, while Russia does not make this assertion.