Two soldiers of the Turkish security forces were killed by militants of the outlawed Kurdish Workers' Party (PKK) in a military operation in southeastern Turkey, an official statement said on Sunday.

The statement issued by Sirnak governor's office said that a group of PKK militants on Saturday opened fire at the Turkish soldiers during the operation in Bestler Dereler area in Sirnak province, leaving the two soldiers dead.

The security forces have launched large-scale operations against PKK since the beginning of this spring, when the harsh climate there turned to mild and was in favor of the military operations.

PKK, listed as a terrorist organization by the United States,

NATO and the European Union, launched an armed campaign for an

ethnic homeland in the mainly Kurdish southeastern Turkey in 1984, sparking decades of strife that has claimed more than 30,000 lives.

The intensity of the fighting eased after PKK leader Abdullah

Ocalan was captured and imprisoned in 1999, but fighting flared up again in recent years.

Source: Xinhua