12 soldiers die from methane gas

AFP | Istanbul

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Turkey said yesterday that 12 soldiers had died after being exposed to methane gas during a search operation in caves in northern Iraq, increasing its previous toll of eight.

The incident comes at a sensitive time, with Turkey in talks to end the conflict with the Kurds after the PKK group agreed to halt its decades-long armed struggle.

The conflict, which began in 1984, has cost more than 40,000 lives. Investigators did not give any information about the condition of the other seven soldiers who were exposed to the gas.