The rebel Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) blamed the military for an increase in violence in the southeast of the country in recent weeks, according to a statement carried by Firat, a well-known mouthpiece for the group.

"There has been a marked increase in (army) operations despite the fact that the unilateral ceasefire that our movement has been keeping since October 1 has not been formally abolished," the statement said.

Rebel attacks were the result of "self-defence and the use of our right of retaliation to losses," the PKK said, adding, "We openly declare that if the operations cease, the tensions will also cease."

The statement came as Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan indicated he would resist calls from the influential military for an incursion into neighbouring northern Iraq to pursue Turkish Kurd rebels taking refuge there.

Military officials have earlier said that most PKK members -- between 3,500 and 3,800 -- are based in northern Iraq, with up to 2,000 others in Turkey.

Facing general elections on July 22, the government has resisted calls for a cross-border operation, which is strongly opposed by both Iraq and the United States, wary over fresh turmoil in the already conflict-ravaged country.

"If the government wants to decrease the tensions and holds the general elections in a secure climate, the only way for it is to stop the military's attacks... Our forces will be careful and responsible," the rebels said in Tuesday's statement.

Violence in the southeast has claimed the lives of 56 members of the security forces and 74 PKK militants this year, according to army figures.

Seven civilians were killed in May when a suicide bomber, believed to be a Kurdish militant, blew himself up at a busy shopping centre in Ankara.

The PKK, listed as a terrorist organisation by Ankara and much of the international community, called a unilateral ceasefire on October 1, saying it hoped this would pave the way for a dialogue to resolve the conflict.

The truce, like the previous ones called by the PKK, was quickly rejected by Turkey.

The PKK took up arms for Kurdish self-rule in the southeast in 1984. The conflict has claimed more than 37,000 lives.