Officials had earlier said that the soldier was killed in a clash with separatist Kurdish rebels, who are active in the mainly Kurdish region and often infiltrate from Iran, which also has a restive Kurdish minority.

The contrabandists' group, comprised of four or five people, fled back to Iranian territory after the shooting, the office of the Van governor said in a statement, carried by Anatolia news agency.

The statement did not say in what illicit trade the group was involved.

Smugglers are known to bring mainly cheap diesel oil or narcotics from Iran to Turkey.

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