UPDATED ON:
Monday, July 06, 2009
12:28 Mecca time, 09:28 GMT
 
News Europe
Blast claims lives in Turkey

At least four people have been killed and eight injured in a roadside bomb blast in southeastern Turkey, according to local media.

The blast occured when a lorry carrying road and dam construction workers, hit an explosive device in the Sirnak province on Monday, the Anatolia news agency reported.

The office for the local governor said the device was believed to have been planted by fighters from the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), but this has not been independently verified.

In a statement the office said that none of the injured were in a life-threatening condition.

A security operation has been launched by the army in the area.

The PKK, which has laid similar devices in the past, has been fighting for autonomy in southeast Turkey for 25 years, in a conflict that has claimed the lives of at least 40,000 people .

Last month, the PKK announced that it was extending a ceasefire in its armed campaign until July 15 in response to  progress towards a peaceful resolution to the conflict.

The group cautioned, however, that it would defend itself if its members came under attack from the Turkish military.

The PKK is considered a terrorist organisation by Turkey, the  European Union and the US.

 Source: Agencies
 
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