One policeman martyred in Turkey's southeast

DIYARBAKIR, Turkey

A policeman was martyred and five others injured during a counter-terrorism operation in Turkey’s southeastern province of Sirnak on Thursday.

Security forces were conducting operations to remove terror organization PKK's trenches and barricades in the Cizre district, currently under curfew, security sources said.

Police officers were hit by a rocket attack by PKK terrorists during the operation, the sources added.

Four wounded police officers will be sent to hospitals in Ankara, according to a Health Ministry official Eyup Gumus, while another slightly injured officer has been receiving treatment in the province.

The PKK - considered a terrorist organization by Turkey, the U.S., and the EU - resumed its 30-year armed campaign against the Turkish state in late July.

A total of 228 PKK terrorists have been killed in counter-terrorism operations in southeastern Turkey since Dec. 15, according to Turkish General Staff.

According to a statement on Turkish Armed Forces' official website, most of the casualties took place in the Cizre and Silopi districts of Sirnak province and in Diyarbakir's Sur district where the operations continue amid a curfew.

Out of the 228 terrorists, 161 were killed in Cizre and 22 others in Silopi, while 45 more were killed in Sur.