The civilian vehicle was taking villagers to the city centre when it hit the mine near the village of Gecitli in Hakkari province, on the border with Iraq and Iran, the source said on condition of anonymity.

Three people were also wounded in the blast.

Immediate suspicions for the blast fell on the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), which has been fighting for self-rule in the country's mainly Kurdish southeast since 1984.