BREAKING NEWS

Turkish forces kill 12 Kurd fighters crossing from Iraq

DIYARBAKIR, Turkey - Turkish security forces killed at least 12 Kurdish militants after they were spotted crossing the border from Iraq, the military said on Saturday, while a soldier was killed by a mine blast. The Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) guerrillas were killed during operations on Friday and early Saturday in the southeast province of Sirnak, the military statement said.
The soldier died in Hakkari, another insurgency-plagued province bordering both Iran and Iraq, state-run Antaolian news agency said. Some PKK fighters operate from bases in the Qandil Mountains of northern Iraq. The PKK ended a six-month ceasefire in February and there have been fears of rising violence before a parliamentary election on June 12 that is expected to result in a comfortable third successive victory for Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan's AK Party.