PKK attack on Turkish border posts leaves 38 dead (Roundup)

Oct 4, 2008, 11:51 GMT

Ankara - The outlawed Kurdish Workers' Party (PKK) launched a heavy attack on Turkish border posts that left 38 dead, Turkey's military leadership said Saturday in Ankara.

The PKK launched the attack from northern Iraq, the military said, adding that 15 Turkish soldiers and 23 PKK fighters were killed in the attack.

Some 20 Turkish soldiers were injured in the attack, and two soldiers were still unaccounted for.

The attack took place on the Aktutun border post in the south- eastern province of Hakkari.

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan broke off a trip to Central Asia after hearing of the attack.

'We will carry out our fight against terrorism with even more resolve,' Erdogan said.

Turkish media reports said the border post was attacked by 350 PKK fighters using heavy weapons, leading to the high number of casualties on the Turkish side, the reports said.

In the past, PKK fighters have abducted Turkish soldiers and taken them into Iraqi territory.

Turkish fighter jets have bombed suspected PKK bases in northern Iraq several times in recent weeks.

In February, the Turkish Army claimed to have killed 240 PKK fighters in a week-long ground offensive in Iraq.

A total of 27 Turkish soldiers were killed in the February offensive, which was restricted to the Kurdish Autonomus Region of northern Iraq.

The PKK is listed as a terrorist organization by the European Union and United States.

It has been fighting for independence or greater autonomy for the Kurdish parts of Turkey since the 1980s.

The Turkish Army says that at least 35,000 people have died in the fighting since then.