PKK kills four women, one student in attacks on police

The PKK attacked a van with rifles and hand grenades in the southeastern province of Siirt late on Tuesday, killing four women in the vehicle, according to Siirt Governor Musa Çolak. Two other women in the van were injured.

One of the assailants was killed when a grenade exploded prematurely in his hand. The attack occurred close to Siirt's police academy, leading to speculation that the assailants may have mistaken the van for a police vehicle.

The attacks come shortly after a bomb explosion in the capital, killing three people.

Interior Minister İdris Naim Şahin arrived in Siirt on Wednesday at noon together with Deputy National Police Chief Ahmet Pek and visited the families of the victims waiting outside the Siirt State Hospital morgue. He later attended a ceremony for the deceased held at the Şeyh Musa Mosque.

Sisters Nergiz Evin (25), Zeynep Evin (31), Kevser Çekin (25) and Nurcan Olgaç (25) were killed in the attack. In another attack, the PKK targeted a police academy in Bitlis, killing a student and injuring five others. A large-scale operation was launched in the province to capture the assailants.

On Wednesday the Peace and Democracy Party (BDP) said it strongly condemned the two recent terrorist attacks in Ankara and Siirt, saying that they share the pain of victims’ families.

Co-chairpersons of the party Gülten Kışanak and Selahattin Demirtaş issued a written statement on Wednesday and recalled that three people died and 34 others were injured in a bomb attack in Ankara on Tuesday while four women were killed in another attack in Siirt later in the day. Delivering condolences to the families of the victims, they said they share their pain.

“Those who have carried out and ordered the two attacks should be immediately exposed. An investigation that leaves no questions unanswered should be carried out, and all information gathered should be shared with the public,” the statement said. The BDP statement also criticized contradictory statements by government officials on Tuesday regarding the casualties in the Ankara attack, saying these statements signal that “the government does not have the intention or ability to carry out a sound investigation.” “As the BDP, we share our pain with the public, and we would like to stress that we will continue to strive for peace and democracy in our country in order to prevent such incidents,” the statement noted.

Gül says recent terrorist attacks ‘suicide, self-destruction’ for PKK

In condemnation of the attacks in Siirt and another one in Ankara on Tuesday, Turkish President Abdullah Gül said the terrorist organization will “commit suicide” with the attacks and must “prepare for its self-destruction.”

Gül was speaking to reporters following a reception he held in honor of German President Christian Wulff and his wife Bettina Wulff in Berlin on Tuesday night. “What I want to highlight for the people here is that these are brutal, treacherous attacks. These are attacks on civilians in the heart of Ankara. These are attacks on people who were going to a wedding. These are attacks carried out by people who cannot be called human and who have lost their mind. They have, in fact, prepared for their end with these [attacks],” Gül said.

The president also underscored that not only Turkey but the whole world has condemned the attacks. “Everyone should know that the Turkish state will neither cower nor make any concessions. It will overcome this with determination,” he added.

“There may still be some people in the world who view them [the PKK] with sympathy, but now they too have begun to hate them. So, these [attacks] are a result of their [the PKK’s] helplessness and weakness. This attack in the heart of Ankara on innocent people is in fact suicide,” Gül added.

An explosion from a car bomb ripped through a street in the Turkish capital of Ankara in a neighborhood housing government buildings, killing three people and injuring 34 others, on Tuesday. The PKK has not claimed responsibility for the attack, but officials suspect the blast may have been perpetrated by the organization.

However, the People’s Defense Forces (HPG), the armed wing of the PKK, in a written statement posted online by the Fırat news agency on Wednesday denied any relation to the attack. The statement said that “attempts to hold the PKK responsible for the attack aim to boost enmity against Kurds and to target Kurdish civilians.”

Military says 152 PKK targets hit since Aug. 17 in Iraq

In related developments, the Turkish General Staff on Wednesday said that the Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) have hit 152 terrorist PKK targets in northern Iraq since Aug. 17, when the Turkish military launched an offensive against the PKK in the neighboring country.

A statement released on the General Staff’s website said that all strikes have reached their objective and that all targets were destroyed. “The northern part of Iraq will be closely monitored in terms of the activities of the separatist terrorist organization in that region, and the air offensive will continue when new targets are set,” the statement said. PKK terrorists use the mountains of northern Iraq as a sanctuary from which they launch attacks on southeastern Turkey. The raids, the first conducted by Turkey in the area since July 2010, were in response to a surge in PKK activity in recent months. The General Staff earlier released images of the military’s offensive against the PKK in northern Iraq. The images show laser-guided bombs hitting PKK targets such as depots, hiding places and anti-aircraft stations. The military has insisted that all targets were carefully pinpointed through repeated reconnaissance flights before being hit and that the military had taken the necessary precautions to avoid civilian casualties.

Rangers raid Tunceli region

In other developments, the Turkish military’s rangers were in Tunceli on Wednesday for an operation in which 2,000 soldiers participated. The units set up blockades around the rural areas of Tunceli to capture terrorists reported by intelligence units to be present in the area in what has been described as the largest operation against the terrorist group in years. The rangers are following four different bands of PKK terrorists known to be active in the area. Six Sikorsky helicopters are aiding in the operation.