Turkish officials lift curfew in flashpoint town

Turkish authorities lifted a punishing curfew today in the flashpoint southeastern town of Silvan, where Kurdish activists and security forces had clashed.
"The curfew imposed on November 3 in three neighbourhoods of Silvan was lifted today from 2 PM (1630 IST)," said a statement from the regional governor's office.
Turkish security forces backed up by tanks and combat helicopters launched a large-scale operation 12 days ago that ended in recent days to retake control of areas of the town occupied by members of the youth wing of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK).
The statement said an army officer, two police officers, two civilians and five Kurdish activists were killed during fierce clashes that sent people fleeing from the city.

Local MPs warned that the mainly Kurdish town of 90,000 faced dire shortages of water, food and electricity and one accused Ankara of trying to "massacre" the population.
Southeast Turkey has been rocked by a new wave of unrest that has left several hundred people dead since a two-year-old truce between Ankara and the PKK fell apart in July.

The PKK has ended a unilateral truce it had declared before the November 1 election, which saw President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's Justice and Development Party (AKP) win back a parliamentary majority.
Erdogan subsequently vowed to press on with the fight against the PKK until all its fighters are "wiped out".

Tens of thousands of people have been killed since the PKK took up arms in 1984 demanding an independent state for Kurds. Since then the group has narrowed its demands to greater autonomy and cultural rights.