ANKARA, Turkey, April 2 (UPI) -- Turkish troops Wednesday killed several members of a Kurdish rebel group as officials denied a secret diplomatic visit from Kurdish representatives.

Turkish troops launched raids against members of the Kurdistan Worker's Party, known by its Kurdish language initials PKK, Monday in the southeastern Turkish province of Sirnak.

Three Turkish troops died and five others suffered injuries in clashes Monday with PKK rebels.

Turkish officials denied reports that a delegation from Kurdish Democratic Party of Iraq planned a visit to Ankara, The New Anatolian reported.

Media reports said Turkish and Kurdish officials met last week to discuss the normalization of relations between Turkey and Kurdish areas of Iraq. Senior Kurdish officials told the newspaper talks could happen if the security climate was favorable but stressed nothing on the table, The New Anatolian said.