Istanbul - The Turkish military Saturday claimed that it killed 19 fighters of the banned underground organization The Kurdish Workers Party (PKK) in clashes in which six Turkish soldiers also died. The PKK attacked an police station overnight in Hakkari province near the Iraqi border, the Turkish General Staff in Ankara said.
Six soldiers were initially reported killed and the military announced later that at least 19 PKK fighters had also died.
The clashes were continuing Saturday with Turkish media also reporting airstrikes against Kurds in northern Iraq.
According to the reports, a PKK armed group launched an attack on the border post in an attempt to cross into Iraq from Turkey.
The Turkish military in February claimed to have killed 240 PKK fighters in an incursion into Iraq in February. Some 27 Turkish soldiers also died in the offensive.
The PKK is considered to be a terrorist organization by the European Union and the United States.
