Diyarbakir - Turkish security forces killed six Kurdish rebels and lost three soldiers in clashes overnight, the first casualties in the conflict for six weeks, emergency rule authorities said yesterday.
Fighting between the military and Abdullah Ocalan's Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) guerrillas has all but stopped since he ordered a unilateral ceasefire and harsh winter weather descended on the mountainous south-east. The emergency rule governor's office in Diyarbakir said security forces clashed with PKK rebels on Gabbar Mountain in Sirnak province. Five guerrillas and three soldiers were killed in the fighting.