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Nine Kurdish rebels killed in Turkey clashes

ANKARA, Sept 22, 2007 (AFP) - Nine Kurdish rebels have been killed in two separate clashes with the army in Turkey's restive southeast, the military said Saturday.

One of the clashes, in which four militants of the separatist Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) were killed, occurred overnight in a mountainous area in the province of Hakkari, which borders Iraq and Iran, a statement on the army's website said.

Five others were killed in fighting in the neighbouring province of Sirnak on Friday, it said.

The security forces also seized weapons and explosives in the clashes.

The PKK, which has bases in neighbouring northern Iraq, has stepped up its military activity this year.

The group, considered a terrorist organisation by Ankara, the United States and the European Union, has been fighting for self-rule in Turkey's mainly Kurdish east and southeast since 1984. The conflict has claimed more than 37,000 lives.