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Turkish army reports 11 more rebels killed, 33 in five days

ANKARA, July 16, 2008 (AFP) - Troops backed by fighter jets and helicopter gunships killed 11 separatist Kurdish rebels in the Buzul (iceberg) mountains of southeastern Hakkari province, which borders Iran and Iraq, the Turkish army said Wednesday.

The latest deaths brought to 33 the number of Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) rebels killed in the last five days, after 22 reported killed Tuesday in the Incebel mountains in neighbouring Sirnak province, the General Staff said on its website.

In its report Tuesday, the army had said that rebel casualties included a "high-ranking member" of the PKK, listed as a terrorist group by most of the international community and fighting for self-rule in Turkey's east and southeast since 1984 in a conflict that has claimed more than 37,000 lives.

Turkey has stepped up military action against the PKK since December, conducting air strikes and a week-long ground incursion into northern Iraq, where it says more than 2,000 PKK rebels have taken refuge.