Turkish General Staff Says 23 PKK Militants Killed in Southeast

At least 23 Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) fighters have been killed in clashes with security forces in southeastern Turkey over the past 24 hours, the Turkish General Staff said Wednesday.

ANKARA (Sputnik) – Five members of the banned organization were killed in Sirnak, four in Hakkari province’s Yuksekova and 14 in Mardin province’s Nusaybin, the Turkish General Staff said in its daily report.

Handmade explosives have been found and destroyed in all three regions, while Dragunov sniper rifles, Kalashnikov rifles and pistols were seized in Yuksekova.

Since the start of the counterterrorist operation, 118 PKK members have been killed in Sirnak, 92 in Yuksekova and 137 in Nusaybin, the general staff added.

Turkish Interior Minister Efkan Ala introduced a 24/7 curfew across seven southeastern Turkish regions, including the city of Sirnak, on March 20.

Clashes between the Turkish government and the PKK have claimed the lives of over 350 soldiers and police officers since they erupted in July 2015.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan alleges over 5,000 Kurdish insurgents have been killed in the campaign since mid-December, a figure that pro-Kurdish officials contend includes hundreds of civilians.