Turkish soldiers killed 20 Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) militants in clashes in eastern Turkey on Sunday, army sources said. There was no information on any army casualties. Earlier, army sources had said an 8,000 troop-strong operation had been launched in central-eastern Turkey.
Ankara is preparing for a possible incursion into northern Iraq to tackle separatist PKK guerrillas based there, under increasing public pressure as some 40 people had been killed by the PKK in the last month.