Kurdish fighting leaves 25 dead

ISTANBUL - At least 21 guerrillas, a soldier and three civilians were killed over the weekend in what has become the bloodiest year in the eight-year Kurdish rebellion against Turkish rule, writes Hugh Pope.

Turkish officials yesterday said the victims died in at least four incidents in the south-east, home to about half of Turkey's 12 million Kurds. More than 800 of the 4,200 people killed in the insurgency have died since January.

The guerrillas were from the Kurdistan Workers' Party, fighting on despite heavy casualties during an army offensive launched in March.