Turkey detains three French over alleged PKK links

DIYARBAKIR, Turkey: Turkish security forces on Thursday detained 16 suspects, including three French nationals, in the Kurdish-majority southeast over alleged ties to outlawed Kurdish militants, the state-run Anadolu news agency reported.

The operation was launched in the Beytussebap district of Sirnak province bordering Iraq to capture supporters of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) and its urban wing the KCK, Anadolu said.

The detainees included three French nationals -- one of whom was a woman, it said, without giving further details on the identity of the the foreign citizens. The authorities are still battling the over three-decade insurgency of the PKK which initially took up arms for a separate state but now demands a degree of autonomy.

The clashes between Turkish security forces and PKK members have resumed after a fragile ceasefire collapsed in 2015. The PKK is designated as a terror group by Turkey and its Western allies including the US and the EU.