DIYARBAKIR, Turkey
A police officer was kidnapped by suspected Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) militants in southeastern Turkey on Tuesday, police said.
Officer Sedat Yabalak was driving with his family from Erzurum to Sanliurfa when he was kidnapped on the Diyarbakir-Bingol Highway in Lice district, police added.
Yabalak's family was allowed to leave. The kidnapped police officer had been recently assigned to Sanliurfa from Hatay province.
Security forces have started an investigation into the incident.
The incident comes four days after another police officer was kidnapped on the same highway. Officer Vedat Kaya was heading from Mardin to Mus with his family last Friday when suspected PKK members allegedly stopped his car and kidnapped him after learning that he was a police officer. His family was also set free.
Police attacked in Sirnak
At least two children and a policeman were wounded in Turkey's eastern Sirnak province on Tuesday, security sources said. The wounded were taken to Cizre State Hospital.
Police came under attack with homemade explosives when they tried to open the blocked Berivan Street in Cizre district.
Protesters in the district had been demonstrating against Turkey's air campaign against the PKK.
The PKK is listed as a terrorist organization by the U.S., the EU and Turkey.
Turkey recently launched airstrikes against Daesh and the PKK in Syria and Iraq following a series of attacks targeting civilians and security forces.
