TURKEY - Sept 30 - Turkish Troops Kill 2 Kurdish Guerrillas Day After Deadly Ambush.

Turkish troops kill two Kurdish guerrillas a day after a group of rebels launch a deadly ambush on a minibus in southeastern Turkey, local media said. The rebels of the Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK, attacked a military outpost at the Iraqi border overnight, and at least two rebels were killed in the fighting, news agency Anatolia said. On Sept 29, rebels had ambushed a minibus carrying government-paid village guards and civilians, and killed 12 people, the governor of Sirnak province said. The minibus ambush took place 50 kilometers (30 miles) from Sunday's attack, but it was not immediately clear if the same rebels were involved. The governor's office denied earlier reports that the body of a7-year-old boy had been found near the minibus, increasing the death toll to 13, private news agency Dogan said. Turkish troops have killed more than 20 rebels in operations over the past 15days in the area near the border, officials said. The rebels "started targeting civilians as a result of our security forces' determined battle", PM Recep Tayyip Erdogan said. "They will definitely get a response". A pro-Kurdish party accused of having ties to the PKK rebels also condemned the ambush. "Our government shares the responsibility (for the attack)for not taking the political measures to prevent the fighting", according to the statement by the Democratic Society Party, which has20 lawmakers in the Parliament. On Sept 29, Turkey and Iraq signed an agreement to cooperate in cracking down on separatist Kurdish rebels who have been attacking Turkey from bases in Iraq. Despite Ankara's insistence, Iraq refused to allow Turkey to send its troops across the border to chase the Kurdish rebels. Turkey has pondered across-border military operation to root out PKK members holed up in the mountainous areas of northern Iraq. However, the US _a close ally of Ankara_ objected to such a move, fearing it could destabilize the relatively calm part of Iraq. Kurdish lawmakers in Iraq also oppose any military move by Turkey across the border. The PKK is labeled a terrorist organization by the US and the European Union. The group has been fighting for autonomy since 1984 and tens of thousands have been killed in the conflict.