Turkish soldier killed in operations in southeast

Ankara: A Turkish soldier was killed in an armed attack in Nusaybin in Turkey’s southeast, the armed forces said in a statement on Saturday.

The soldier was injured having been attacked by members of the “separatist terrorist organisation” during operations against the group, and was taken to hospital. He could not be saved and died by 11am local time, the statement said.

A ceasefire between the militant group Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) and the state collapsed last July and attacks on Turkey’s security forces have since increased amid a surge in violence in the predominantly Kurdish southeast that has killed hundreds of people.

The PKK is recognised as a terrorist organisation by Turkey, the United States and the European Union.