The blast occurred during a security sweep near the town of Semdinli in Hakkari province, the report said.

It was not immediately clear who had planted the explosives but rebels from the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) often use landmines in their attacks.

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