Turkey: 7 soldiers killed and 11 wounded in clashes with Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK)
Alleged members of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party, or PKK, shot dead one major and six Turkish soldiers in an ambush in the eastern province of Hakkari’s Çukurca district Wednesday morning.
Eleven more soldiers were also injured in the attack.
“They (the PKK) are trying to test our patience. We will defeat them by acting within the scope of the law and democracy. Everybody will see us defeat them,” said Turkish National Defense Minister Ismet Yilmaz.
The PKK ended its six-month-old unilateral cease-fire in February and moved to what it calls an “active defense” stance, whereby its fighters defend themselves if threatened.
Clashes between the PKK and security forces have increased since the general elections on June 12.