Turkish warplanes have launched a wave of air strikes on Kurdish PKK rebel bases in northern Iraq after its security forces came under attack in eastern Turkey.

Dozens of jets were said to be involved in the raids hours after Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu pledged to "wipe out" rebel strongholds.

PKK bombs killed at least 16 Turkish soldiers on Sunday, the army said.

A further attack on a police minibus on Tuesday claimed 14 lives.

PKK (Kurdistan Workers' Party) rebels targeted the vehicle as it was heading towards a border post close to the Azerbaijan-run enclave of Nakhchivan, reports said.

Hours later, a policeman was shot dead when suspected PKK militants opened fire on his car in the eastern state of Kunceli, reports said.

The surge in violence follows the collapse of a ceasefire in July between the army and the PKK.

The truce, which began in 2013, unravelled after a suicide bombing by suspected Islamic State militants near the border with Syria led to mutual recriminations between Kurdish groups and Turkey.

Not a day passes by in Turkey these days without violence. And as one attack follows another, emotions are running high.

The funerals of 16 soldiers killed in Sunday's PKK attack were taking place on Tuesday.

Several thousand people have protested in cities across Turkey against PKK violence and the premises of the pro-Kurdish HDP party have come under attack. There were reports of attempted arson.

There is now serious concern that the violence could spiral out of control.

Turkey is gearing up for snap elections on 1 November after the ruling AK Party lost its overall majority in June elections and failed to form a coalition government.

It was the HDP that deprived the AKP of its majority, polling over 13% of the vote and entering parliament as a political party for the first time.

Opposition figures have voiced concerns about maintaining poll security, especially in Turkey's predominantly Kurdish east and south-east of the country.

Source: BBC