Turkish soldiers killed in helicopter crash

Seventeen Turkish soldiers were killed on Saturday when their helicopter crashed in southeastern Turkey due to bad weather conditions, the area's governor has said.

The Sikorsky helicopter crashed in heavy fog on Herekol mountain, in the Pervari area of Siirt province, according to Governor Ahmed Aydin.

The victims were members of special police forces.

The group was traveling to southeastern Turkey for military operations against the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), a militant group which has battled the Turkish government for decades, demanding more rights for Kurds, including autonomy in the mostly Kurdish southeast of the country.

Several days ago, Turkish media reported that soldiers were airlifted into northern Iraq for a brief operation against suspected rebels, who have bases there.

There were no reports of casualties on that mission.

Turkey periodically carries out artillery and air strikes on PKK positions in northern Iraq, but reports of cross-border incursions are rare.

Since summer there has been an upsurge in PKK attacks in southeast Turkey, notably in the Hakkari region.

Turkish jets and helicopters have pounded PKK positions along the border with Iraq and Iran for three days, killing 42 militants, Hakkari's governor said late on Friday.

More than 40,000 people have been killed in the conflict between Turkey and the PKK, which launched its insurgency in 1984 with the aim of carving out a separate state in mainly Kurdish southeast Turkey.

Saturday 10 november 2012

http://www.aljazeera.com/news/europe/2012/11/201211108515163949.html