Kurdish PKK rebels kill multiple soldiers in southeastern Turkey

DAGLICA, Turkey, Sept. 6 (UPI) -- Multiple soldiers were killed in an attack by Kurdish PKK rebels in southeastern Turkey, according to reports by the media and the rebels themselves.

The BBC quoted Turkish media as saying roadside bombs struck two military vehicles passing by in the village of Daglica, as well as a PKK statement claiming the rebels killed 15 Turkish soldiers and seized weaponry.

Xinhua news agency, quoting local media, reports 16 soldiers were killed in the incident.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is reported to have promised "a very particular and decisive" response to the attack, and Turkish media reported Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu called an emergency security meeting over the matter.

The attack joins a growing list of clashes between the Turkish armed forces and the PKK, or Kurdistan Workers' Party, which is considered a terrorist organization by the Ankara government and the United States.

A 2013 PKK cease-fire agreement with the Turkish government fell apart in July after the group reportedly claimed responsibility for killing two police officers in city of Gaziantep, in southeastern Turkey.

As well, a suicide bombing by Islamic State militants killed more than 30 people in the Turkish town of Suruc, prompting the Turkish military to begin bombing IS forces in northern Syria -- as well as PKK positions in southeastern Turkey near the borders with Syria, Iraq and Iran.

Aug. 11 airstrikes hit several PKK positions in the Hakkari province, where Sunday's attack occurred.

Turkey has blamed the PKK for recent suicide attacks against security personnel, as well as the sabotage of a natural gas pipeline running from Iran to Turkey.

Security forces have detained more than 1,300 people with suspected ties to IS, the PKK and leftist groups, the Turkish prime minister's office said last month.

Both the PKK and Turkey have accused each other of collaborating with IS forces.

The PKK formed in the 1970s under Marxist and Leninist principles. More than 40,000 people are estimated to have been killed in PKK-related violence since the 1980s, when the Kurdish rebels began fighting the Turkish government for more autonomy.

President Erdogan in late July said it was "impossible" to continue the peace process with the PKK.

"Turkey has the strength to hold terrorists and so-called politicians accountable for the blood of our martyrs," Erdogan said. "Stepping back is out of the question."