The nine militants from the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) were shot dead in a security operation that began Sunday in the mountainous Hakkari province, which borders Iraq and Iran.

A soldier was also wounded in the operation which began after rebel attacks on a local military outpost, the sources said on condition of anonymity.

Separately, a soldier was shot dead in a clash overnight with an underground far-left group in Tunceli province where the militants were believed to have planned an attack on a nearby hydro-electric power plant, they added.

A security operation was under way in the area to hunt down the militants.

The PKK, listed as a terrorist group by Turkey and much of the international community, took up arms for self-rule in the Kurdish-majority southeast in 1984, sparking a conflict that has claimed around 45,000 lives.

Police in the southern city of Adana seized 20 kilogrammes (44 pounds) of plastic explosives and arrested two people, the Anatolia news agency reported.

An investigation has indicated that the explosives were to be used for bombings ahead of and during a September 12 referendum on amendments to the constitution contested by some Kurds, the agency said, citing police.

Kurdish rebels want explict recognition in the constitution of the rights of the 15 million Kurds living in Turkey, which has an overall population of 73 million.

The clashes in eastern Anatolia come amid a unilateral ceasefire called by the PKK for the Muslim holiday of Ramadan, which started August 11 and runs until September 20.

str-han-nc-ba/lt/cw