Eight members of the Turkish security forces and five Kurdish militants were killed in clashes on Thursday in Turkeys restive southeast that borders northern Iraq, the army said. Six soldiers and two military security guards died while two soldiers were wounded -- one heavily -- after fighting broke out in the Semdinli district of Hakkari province, the armed forces said in a statement. The military reported it had killed five members of the "separatist terror organization", Turkeys official term for the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK). It was not possible to independently verify the toll. The armed forces said the militants were "trying to benefit from the heavy fog and bad weather conditions" to launch an attack. The military operations in the region continue, the army said. The PKK is proscribed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the United States and the European Union.