TURKEY: Two Turkish police officers are killed in an overnight attack by Kurdish militants on a police station

Record ID: 352291

  • Title: TURKEY: Two Turkish police officers are killed in an overnight attack by Kurdish militants on a police station
  • Date: 13th May 2011
  • Summary: DIYARBAKIR, TURKEY (MAY 11, 2011) (REUTERS) (NIGHT SHOTS) NIGHT SHOTS OF AMBULANCES PARKED IN FRONT OF HOSPITAL AMBULANCE CARRYING WOUNDED POLICE OFFICERS ARRIVING AT HOSPITAL PEOPLE MILLING AROUND WOUNDED OFFICER BEING TAKEN OUT OF AMBULANCE ON STRETCHER / MEDICS CARRYING WOUNDED OFFICER INSIDE THE HOSPITAL VARIOUS OF EXTERIOR OF HOSPITAL (DAY SHOTS) COFFIN OF SLA
  • Embargoed: 28th May 2011 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Turkey, Turkey
  • Country: Turkey
  • Topics: Crime / Law Enforcement
  • Reuters ID: LVA9ZLCKB4JOPJIYFV90KQH8ZUVU
  • Story Text: Kurdish militants killed two Turkish police officers in an attack overnight on a police station in southeast Turkey, officials said.
    Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) guerrillas opened fire with rifles on a guard post in front of the police station in Silopi town, near the border with Iraq on Thursday (May 11).
    The attacks came one month ahead of a parliamentary election, which is expected to result in a comfortable third successive victory for Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan's AK Party.
    The PKK ended a six-month ceasefire in February and there have been fears of an upsurge in violence ahead of the election.
    Jailed PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan has threatened "war" unless the government enters talks to end the group's 27-year-old separatist conflict with the state after the June 12 election.
    Police set up checkpoints on the outskirts of Silopi and conducted house searches in the town, while helicopters patrolled surrounding countryside in search of the rebels, security sources said.
    The second of the officers died after being flown by helicopter for treatment at a hospital in the main southeastern city of Diyarbakir.
    More than 40,000 people have been killed in the Kurdish conflict.
    END
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