A Turkish soldier was killed in southeastern Diyarbakir province in a new attack blamed on the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK).

A Turkish soldier was killed in southeastern Diyarbakir province in a new attack blamed on the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), security sources said.

Sergeant Mehmet Ali Sarak, 25, came under fire from PKK militants with automatic rifles while on his way to his army base in the Silvan district of Diyarbakir, the sources told AFP on condition of anonymity.

Ankara launched a major "anti-terrorist" campaign against the PKK in late July, aimed at flushing it out of its strongholds in southeastern Turkey and northern Iraq.

The group has hit back hard, killing dozens of police and soldiers in almost daily bomb and shooting attacks.

Nearly 150 soldiers and police have been killed in attacks since July blamed on the PKK compared with more than 1,000 rebels, according to pro-government media.

The escalation has shattered a two-year-ceasefire which had raised hopes of an end to the PKK's three-decade insurgency, in which more than 40,000 people have been killed.