The device is believed to have been planted by the terrorist Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), reports from the region said. The soldier who was killed was identified as gendermarie ranger Pvt. Burhan Kılıç. This reportedly the second loss in the family, whose other son died of accidental electrocution 14 years ago.
Turkey has seen an upsurge in violence since PKK militants called off a 14-month cease-fire at the start of June. Analysts say the PKK’s desire to undermine a referendum democratizing Turkey’s 1982 Constitution, which was drafted shortly after a coup, is responsible for the escalation in violence. Earlier this month an attack on a military outpost left 15 people dead.
The PKK has stepped up its attacks after accusing the government of not being serious about a bid to extend more cultural rights to the country’s Kurds. Most of the PKK’s estimated 4,000 fighters are based in the mountains of neighboring northern Iraq, from where they launch attacks on military targets in southeastern Turkey. Turkey, the United States and the European Union all list the PKK as a terrorist group. More than 40,000 people have been killed in the long-running conflict.
