Police fanned out across the coastal resort town of Altinova on the Aegean sea, where Kurdish-owned homes and shops were attacked and Kurds stoned after Wednesday's incident.

The trouble started when a Kurd crushed two men to death with his van shortly after becoming embroiled in a fight with the pair.

An angry crowd of about 3,000 took to the streets of the Turkish-majority town, brandishing Turkish flags and screaming: "Altinova belongs to us," the Vatan newspaper reported.

Security has been beefed up in the area, the Sabah daily said.

Kurdish rebels from the PKK have been waging a bloody 24-year campaign for self-rule in southeast Turkey, which is Kurdish dominated. The PKK is listed as a terrorist group by Ankara and much of the international community.

According to figures recently released by the Turkish army, the campaign had cost the lives of 32,000 Kurdish rebels, 6,500 members of the security forces and 5,500 civilians.