PKK attack targets local governor in eastern Turkey

By Sinan Uslu, Ali Tepe, Recep Celik

ANKARA/SIIRT, Turkey (AA) - The PKK terrorist organization targeted a district governor in Turkey’s southeastern Siirt province on Friday, the interior minister confirmed.

Baykan's district governor Mehmet Kocabey managed to escape the bomb attack without suffering any injuries.

“Thank God both our district governor and our personnel have escaped with no injuries,” Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu told reporters in Ankara.

Terrorists detonated makeshift explosives planted on the road at around 8.45 a.m. local time (0545GMT), as the Baykan district governor, Mehmet Kocabey, was passing in an armored vehicle, Soylu told reporters in Ankara.

Kocabey’s vehicle sustained minor damages, Anadolu Agency correspondent reported.

An operation has been launched to apprehend the perpetrators.

The incident came after last week’s PKK attacks that killed two ruling Justice and Development (AK) Party deputy chairs in eastern and southeastern Turkey.

Aydin Ahi, deputy chairman in Van province's Ozalp district, was kidnapped and shot dead this past weekend.

Hours earlier, the party’s deputy chairman in Diyarbakir province's Lice district, Orhan Mercan, was shot in front of his house. He was pronounced dead at the hospital.