UPDATE - 3 soldiers martyred in SE Turkey

UPDATES WITH NUMBER OF PKK CASUALTIES

By Yilmaz Kazandioglu

HAKKARI, Turkey (AA) – Three soldiers were martyred and three others injured in an operation against the terrorist PKK in Turkey’s southeastern province of Hakkari early Friday.

Security sources, who asked not to be named due to restrictions on speaking with the media, said the casualties came from a clash in the Cukurca district between Turkish security forces and PKK terrorists in the Mt. Guven area, close to Turkey's border with Iraq.

The PKK terrorists had attempted to infiltrate a military base.

Seven PKK terrorists were “neutralized” and nine others were heavily injured in an air-supported operation in the area.

Turkish authorities often use the word "neutralized" in their statements to imply the terrorist in question was either killed or captured.

The operation is ongoing.

The PKK -- listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the U.S. and EU -- resumed its decades-old armed campaign in July last year. Since then, more than 300 civilians and nearly 800 security personnel have been martyred. Around 8,000 PKK terrorists have been killed or apprehended.