Turkey-PKK conflict: Twin bomb blasts leave at least 8 dead

PanARMENIAN.Net - Kurdish PKK rebels have carried out two bomb attacks on police vehicles in the mainly Kurdish south-east of Turkey, killing at least eight people and wounding many more, officials say, according to BBC News.

Three died and 25 others were injured in a blast in the town of Kiziltepe.

In Diyarbakir, a car bomb killed at least five civilians and wounded 12 others.

Clashes between Turkey's security forces and the PKK resumed last year, ending a ceasefire.

Since then, south-east Turkey has seen its worst violence in 20 years.

The latest violence comes as the army reels from a huge purge following a coup attempt in July.

The attack in Diyarbakir took place at a security checkpoint at a bridge over the Tigris river.

In Kiziltepe, roadside explosives were detonated by remote control near a hospital.

Earlier, officials said four soldiers had been killed and nine wounded when PKK militants opened fire with rockets and long-range weapons from across the Iraqi border into Turkey's Sirnak province.

In a recent interview, PKK commander Cemil Bayik said "a new style of war has been developed" against Turkey.

"The war will from now on be conducted everywhere without distinguishing between mountains, valleys and cities," he was quoted by Firat news agency as saying.

As well as fighting the PKK, Turkey is battling so-called Islamic State, whose militants have carried out a series of bloody attacks over the past year.

The PKK, which is banned in Turkey, launched its insurgency in 1984, alleging widespread abuse and discrimination against Kurds by Turkish authorities.

Since the ceasefire broke down, military operations in the south-east and retaliatory attacks by the PKK have left hundreds of people dead.