Turkey: PKK-attributed blast kills two in southeast August 14

Event

A roadside bombing killed two civilians in Şemdinli district in Turkey's southeastern Hakkari province on Monday, August 14. Anadolu Agency, a Turkish state-run news agency, blamed the attack on the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK)​.

If the PKK is indeed behind this attack, this brings the total number of fatalities from PKK operations in Turkey to five within the last two weeks. The Turkish Interior Ministry said on Monday that 28 PKK militants were killed by government forces in the last week alone; additional clashes between Turkish government forces and the PKK are possible in coming weeks.

Context

The PKK was formed in the late 1970s and launched an armed struggle against the Turkish government in 1984, calling for an independent Kurdish state within Turkey. Since then, more than 40,000 people have died during the conflict with the Turkish government, which reached a peak in the mid-1990s. Although a ceasefire was established in March 2013, it fell apart in July 2015 when Ankara launched air strikes against PKK camps in northern Iraq. The PKK is designated as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the European Union, and the United States. Additionally, the security situation in Turkey remains generally tense amid a national state of emergency that was declared by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on July 20, 2016, following an attempted coup d’état by members of the armed forces.

Advice

Due to the Turkish government's ongoing conflicts with the PKK as well as the Islamic State (IS), most Western governments advise against all travel to areas along the Syrian and Iraqi borders, as well as nonessential travel to the provinces of Şırnak, Gaziantep, Diyarbakir, Mardin, Şanlıurfa, Kilis, Hatay, Siirt, Tunceli, and Hakkâri. The threat of terrorism remains present throughout Turkey, remain vigilant, report any suspicious objects or behavior to the authorities, and all potential protests.