Police officer killed by gunshot in Turkey's southeast

One police officer has been killed by a shot in the head while trying to dispose a bomb in the southeastern province of Diyarbak?r, daily Hürriyet has reported.

The policeman was trying to dispose an improvised explosive device in Diyarbak?r's Sur district, where a curfew has been in effect for eight days, when he was shot in the head in a sniper attack.

He was immediately rushed to the Dicle University Medical Faculty Hospital, but succumbed to his wounds during treatment.

The bomb he was trying to defuse was placed near the 500-year-old Kur?unlu Mosque, which caught fire on Dec. 7 during clashes in Sur. Sur is the historical district where Diyarbak?r Bar Association head Tahir Elçi and two police officers were killed in a shootout on Nov. 28.

Warships build up in Mediterranean amid rising tension over Syria

Turkey welcomes winter as first snowflakes fall

In Photos: Turkish Coast Guard rescues 65 migrants in the Aegean, including 13 children

NATO warships drop anchor off Istanbul's Sarayburnu coast

Halfeti - A town of mesmerizing beauty

Exhibition shows Istanbul through eyes of children

Secret weapons of Turkish army: locally produced rocket launchers, missile systems

The bugs of Ankara: The weirdest scenes that anyone can run into in Turkish capital

A bird's eye view tour of Turkey's eastern provinces of Van and Hakkari

Turkish man with four wives has his 32nd child

Turkish police raid Koza ?pek's media HQ in Istanbul amid protests

Turkey celebrates Republic Day against backdrop of political turbulence