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Turkish soldier, Kurdish rebel killed in fighting

DIYARBAKIR, Turkey, Nov 24, 2006 (AFP) - A Turkish soldier and a Kurdish rebel were killed Friday in the southeast of the country in a security operation despite a ceasefire the militants called last month, officials said.

The fighting took place in mountains in Sirnak province, which borders Iraq and Syria, where the army launched an operation against the separatist Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) earlier in the week.

The Sirnak governor's office had announced the death of a PKK militant on Wednesday and two others on Thursday.

The PKK, which has been battling the Turkish army since 1984, ordered a unilateral ceasefire from October 1, saying it hoped this would pave the way for a peaceful resolution of the conflict.

But the truce, like previous ones called by the rebels, was rejected by Turkey.

Fighting has nonetheless decreased markedly since then.

More than 37,000 people have died since the PKK, considered a terrorist group by by Turkey and much of the international community, took up arms for self-rule in the mainly Kurdish southeast of the country.