Turkey police in shoot-out with IS

Seven suspected Islamic State jihadists and two Turkish policemen were killed in a gun battle in the Kurdish-majority southeast yesterday, adding to tensions as the deeply divided country goes to the polls at the weekend.

The shootout in the main Kurdish city of Diyarbakir was the first on Turkish soil between security forces and the militants since Ankara launched air strikes on IS targets in Syria in July.

Police have been hunting down IS suspects over the suicide bombings that killed 102 people in Ankara on October 10, the worst attack in Turkey's modern history.

They are also tracking a four-member IS cell feared to be plotting large-scale attacks as the country gears up for Sunday's vote with security the paramount concern.