"PKK IED attack" kills two civilians in Turkey's Hakkari

Two people were killed when an improvised explosive device (IED) was detonated by PKK terrorists in Turkey's Hakkari province on Monday, local authorities said.

A statement released by the Hakkari governor's office said PKK targeted a vehicle carrying contractors to the construction site of a police station in Hakkari's Semdinli district and that "two civilians have been killed after the detonation of an IED. An investigation into the attack has been launched and is ongoing."

The PKK – listed as a terrorist organisation by Turkey, the US and the EU – has been officially at war with the Turkish state since 1984.

Some 40,000 people have been killed in the clashes mainly concentrated in Turkey's southeast, as well as various attacks elsewhere in the country.

A reconciliation process was initiated by the Turkish government with "the ultimate goal" of disarming the PKK in 2013 after an earlier, failed detente. Recent accords broke down in July 2015 when two police officers were killed. That caused a flare-up in the state's fight against the group.

Since then, the group has been responsible for the deaths of more than 1,200 Turkish security personnel and civilians.

Ongoing anti-terror operations 

Turkish forces have “neutralised” 43 PKK terrorists in a week of operations, according to the country’s interior ministry.

In a briefing, the ministry said 28 PKK terrorists were killed, 14 others surrendered to the security forces and one was detained during counterterrorism operations in the eastern and southern provinces of Mardin, Mus, Tunceli, Hakkari and Diyarbakir since last Monday.

Turkish forces also destroyed 15 shelters and weapon depots, as well as defusing 15 improvised explosive devices and mines.

Almost 2,800 kilograms of bomb-making materials were seized, as were 47 firearms – including 33 heavy and long-barreled weapons.

In around 1,200 counterterrorism operations across Turkey, security forces detained 319 suspects on charges of aiding PKK terrorists.

Eighty-seven people were held for allegedly being linked to Daesh, and 267 were investigated on charges related to the Gulenist network Ankara calls the Fetullah Terrorist Organisation (FETO).

Three people were also held on alleged links to left-wing terror groups.

Major attack prevented

Acting on a tip-off security personnel raided a villa in the Cukurova district of southern Adana province and seized a huge cache of weapons as well as hundreds of kilograms of explosive materials on Monday, according to a police official.

The unnamed official told Anadolu Agency that PKK/KCK-linked terrorists, who were planning an attack on August 15, were using the residence as a base of operations.

During the raid, security forces seized 12 Kalashnikov assault rifles, 24 hand grenades, more than 10 police uniforms, 1.5 tonnes of ammonium nitrate, 300 kilogrammes of nails and screws, 12 bulletproof vests, 96 Kalashnikov magazines, over 1,000 bullets and bomb making materials, the police official said.

Adana Governor Mahmut Demirtas confirmed that a “substantial amount of ammunition” had been seized.

Although no suspects were inside of the residence at the time of the raid, authorities remain on the lookout for suspects linked to the incident, Demirtas added.