Three PKK members killed in shootout with Turkish police

Published June 22nd, 2016 - 01:00 GMT
A PKK fighter at a training base in northern Iraq. (AFP/file)
A PKK fighter at a training base in northern Iraq. (AFP/file)

Three alleged memebers of the PKK organization were killed in the Bitlis province, eastern Turkey, during a gun battle with police, security sources said on Wednesday.

Three civilians were also injured, one of them seriously, said the unnamed sources, speaking on condition of anonymity due to restrictions on speaking with the media.

The gunfight broke out on a highway between Van and the Bitlis province when PKK fighters allegedly assaulted police with rocket launchers and long-barreled guns

The injured civilians were taken to a nearby hospital.

The  30-year conflict between the PKK and the Turkish state was resumed in July 2015, after a ceasefire collapsed.

Since then, more than 7,700 PKK terrorists killed in operations across Turkey and northern Iraq. Nearly 600 Turkish security personnel, including troops, police officers, and village guards, have also been killed.