ANKARA, Turkey, June 21 (UPI) -- The Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK, has ramped up its militancy in an effort to portray the government as anti-Kurdish, research from Ankara suggests.
Turkish forces killed 12 members of the PKK following an attack on a military post in southeastern Turkey. Military officials also said that Turkish warplanes crossed the border to bomb PKK positions in Iraq.
Sedat Laciner, director of Turkish research center International Strategic Research Organization, said the rise in PKK activity is an attempt by the group to control the domestic agenda, Turkish daily newspaper Today's Zaman reports.
Ankara is considering a series of reforms in a constitutional measure set for a September vote.
A report from the Turkish military, however, says regional developments are to blame for the rise in attacks. Ankara points to recent talks with Kurdish leaders in Iraq as a reason for the violence, claiming rapprochement is part of the effort to drive the PKK out of the border region.
Turkish authorities have also issued allegations saying a PKK raid on a military base in the port city of Iskenderun may be connected to the May 31 attack by Israeli forces of a Turkish-flagged aid vessel on its way to Gaza.
