Nine killed in bus bombing

Turkey (AP):

A roadside bomb attack killed nine people travelling on a minibus yesterday, authorities said, in the latest violence to shake Turkey's turbulent southeast, where Kurdish guerrillas have been fighting for autonomy for decades.

Turkish troops launched an operation to hunt those believed to be behind the attack, which also injured four people, including a 15-month-old baby, near the village of Gecitli in the rugged Hakkari province bordering Iran and Iraq, Hakkari Governor Muammer Turker said.

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan vowed to press ahead with the fight against the rebels of the Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK. The PKK later denied responsibility.

Nothing to do with it

The rebels suggested it may have been the work of forces trying to discredit the group.

Roj Welat, a spokesman for the PKK, told the Associated Press: "We have nothing to do with this explosion and we do not target civilians."

Kurdish rebels have targeted military vehicles with improvised explosive devices, with the latest such attack on Wednesday in Hakkari province. There have also been several other attacks on police over the past week, which would violate the ceasefire the rebels declared as a pro-Kurdish party called on the government to open dialogue with rebels for a peaceful solution.

The Hakkari governor's office initially said 10 people were killed in the blast, but later reduced the death toll to nine. It said the mix-up stemmed from the condition of the bodies and that one of the victims had two different names.