The attack occurred late in the evening in the mountainous province of Tunceli, local officials told the agency.

An operation was launched to track down the assailants.

Tunceli, a Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) stronghold, is about 600 kilometres (370 miles) north of the Iraqi border, where clashes between the army and the separatist group have recently intensified.

Ankara has threatened to stage a military incursion into northern Iraq, where the PKK takes refuge.

The PKK, listed as a terrorist group by Turkey and much of the international community, has waged an armed campaign for Kurdish self-rule in the country's east and southeast since 1984. The conflict has claimed more than 37,000 lives.