Turkish Army Reacts To Multiple Deadly Clashes With Kurdistan Workers’ Party: Prime Minister Calls Emergency Meeting

Several members of the Turkish army were killed in the town of Daglica in southeast Turkey Sunday when two armored vehicles passed over bombs planted by a militant group, whose members then opened fire on the convoy. Though an official death count of the exchange is not yet available, its victims were the latest in a series of deadly encounters between the Turkish army and the Kurdistan Workers’ Party, also known as the PKK, that took place throughout the day.

Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu hurried back to the capital, interupting a visit to watch a national football game in Konya Sunday, to address the conflict and plan a military response, Agence France-Presse reported.

Deadly conflict between the national army and the militant group has occurred on virtually a daily basis following the dissolution of a two-year ceasefire agreement in July. At least 70 security workers and hundreds of PKK members have died in the encounters. Southeast Turkey is a predominantly Kurdish region and PKK members have declared independence in portions of it on several occasions.

Earlier Sunday, two police officers were killed when rockets fired by the Patriotic Revolutionist Youth Movement, which is associated with the PKK, collided with their vehicle in the southeastern city of Diyarbakir. They were patrolling to prevent PKK members from gaining control of nearby neighborhoods.

The governor of Dyiakbakir imposed a curfew in the district where the first attack occurred Sunday. But later in the day, three police officers were wounded in yet another PKK strike.