Kurdish rebels kill nine in border town

on 03/09/2012 11:47:15

Kurdish rebels have attacked security posts in a Turkish town near the border with Iraq, killing nine security personnel, officials have revealed.

Governor Vahdettin Ozkan told Turkey's state-run news agency, Anadolu, that the attack on the security forces in the town of Beytussebap on Sunday night triggered clashes that also killed several Kurdish rebels.

The rebels are fighting for self-rule in south-eastern Turkey, and often stage hit-and-run attacks from bases in Iraq.

There has been a surge in rebel attacks in recent months. Turkish authorities have raised concerns that Kurdish militants are taking advantage of the chaos in Syria to organise there.

The conflict has killed tens of thousands of people since 1984.