Five security officials wounded in operation to rescue stranded civilians in Cizre

Five security officials have been wounded in an outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) attack during an operation to rescue 28 injured civilians stranded in the basement of a building in the Cizre district of southeastern ??rnak province.

PKK militants in Cizre's Cudi neighborhood opened fire against security officials using rocket launchers early on Jan. 31. 

Three special operations police, identified as E.A., H.Ö. and H.Ö., and a noncommissioned officer identified as S.K. were hospitalized with non-life-threatening injuries at Cizre State Hospital. 

However, a specialized gendarmerie sergeant identified as E.B. was transferred to ??rnak Military Hospital after sustaining severe wounds during the attack. 

The ??rnak Governor's Office released a statement on the attack, saying it took place during an operation which aimed, among other things, to "transfer wounded persons that were allegedly in the area."

Meanwhile, a group of volunteer physicians from the Turkish Medical Association (TTB) and the Trade Union of Public Employees in Health and Social Services (SES) who had set off from southeastern Diyarbak?r province to transfer the wounded civilians to a hospital were not permitted to enter the violence-hit district. 

A total of 14 healthcare providers, including nine doctors, four nurses and an ambulance driver, were stopped by soldiers 10 kilometers from ??rnak's ?dil district. The group was told they were not permitted to enter Cizre, where a curfew has been in place since Dec. 14, 2015, upon the orders of the ??rnak Governor's Office. 

A physician from the group, Dr. Vahhac Alp, told reporters they were denied entry to the area without an official document.

"We were denied entry despite...