A masked police officer walks as armoured police vehicles block a road leading to the site of armed clashes with militants in Diyarbakir, southeastern Turkey, Monday, Oct. 26, 2015 (Photo: AP)
Two Turkish policemen and seven ISIS suspects were killed Monday in a gun battle around a jihadist hideout in the main Kurdish city of Diyarbakir.
Police have been on the hunt for ISIS militants since suicide bombings on an Ankara peace rally on October 10 killed 102 people, the deadliest attack in Turkey's modern history.
The carnage marked a sharp escalation of the unrest that has plagued Turkey since an attack on a border town in July sparked an "anti-terror" campaign against Kurdish rebels and ISIS fighters.
Here are the main developments:
- 20: 34 people are killed in a suicide bombing in the mainly Kurdish town of Suruc near the Syrian border, with Turkish officials blaming ISIS.
- 22: The outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) kills two Turkish policemen to avenge the attack. Many Kurds accuse Ankara of complicity with ISIS.
- 24: Turkish jets bomb ISIS targets in Syria for the first time, and PKK militants in northern Iraq. More than 1,000 suspects are arrested.
- 25: PKK's military wing says conditions for maintaining a ceasefire "have been eliminated".
- 28: President Recep Tayyip Erdogan says "it is not possible" to pursue the peace process with the PKK.
5: Turkey joins the US-led coalition against ISIS in Syria. US warplanes bomb ISIS targets from a Turkish base for the first time.
10: Five police are killed in a roadside bombing and a soldier dies in an attack on a military helicopter. Both attacks are blamed on the PKK. Two women open fire at the US consulate in an attack claimed by a far-left group.
19: Eight soldiers are killed in a bombing in the southeastern province of Siirt blamed on the PKK. The authorities say around 160 police and soldiers have been killed in Kurdish militant attacks since the peace process collapsed.
21: Erdogan calls November 1 poll after coalition talks fail.
9: The leader of Turkey's main pro-Kurdish Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) warns the country is being dragged into a "civil war".
10: Pro-Kurdish MPs are barred from the southeastern city of Cizre, under curfew as part of a military operation against PKK fighters. The curfew is lifted September 12.
17: Over 10,000 people rally against terrorism in Ankara. A similar demonstration in Istanbul three days later attracts over 100,000.
22: Two Kurdish ministers quit the cabinet.
10: Two suicide bombers blow themselves up at a pro-Kurdish peace rally near Ankara's main train station, killing 102 people. The government blames ISIS.
The PKK announces it is halting all offensive action against Turkish forces ahead of the election.
19: Four suspects are held over the Ankara bombings.
24: Media reports say police are hunting an ISIS cell suspected of plotting major attacks
26: Two policemen are killed after they launch a raid on a suspected ISIS hideout in Diyarbakir. Officials say seven jihadists are killed and 12 arrested.
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