2 PKK terrorists killed in operation in eastern Turkey

VAN, Turkey

Two PKK terrorists were killed by Turkish security forces in eastern Van province Thursday, according to the regional governor’s office.

Police had launched an operation in Ipekyolu district when it received information about the two, who were found to be at their home. Security forces initially asked them to surrender, but they opened fire instead and a subsequent gunfight resulted in the death of the terrorists.

Van Governor's Office said the slain PKK terrorists, who used the codenames "Cafer" and "Amed", were perpetrators of a bomb attack in the province 10 days ago, which left at least 53 people, including four police officers wounded on the first day of Eid al-Adha.

In an earlier bomb attack last month, the two terrorists had also killed two police officers in the same district, the office added in its statement.

The PKK – listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the U.S. and EU – resumed its decades-old armed campaign last July against the Turkish state. More than 600 security personnel have since been martyred and more than 7,000 PKK terrorists killed.

*Reporting by Hazar; Writing by Ayse Humeyra Atilgan