Three soldiers died and two were injured when an improvised explosive device went off Sunday in an area where Turkish forces have been conducting an operation against fighters from the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), the ministry said.
Accoring to AFP another soldier was killed and one wounded in a shootout with Kurdish fighters near a Turkish military base, it said.
Turkish forces routinely conduct operations against PKK bases in rugged mountains in the Kurdistan Region.
The PKK is listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey and its Western allies.
Turkish troops have maintained a network of bases in Iraq since the mid-1990s under security agreements struck with Saddam Hussein's regime.
The PKK has waged a rebellion in the mainly Kurdish southeast of Turkey since 1984 that has claimed more than 40,000 lives.
The PKK's pan-Kurdish agenda has often put it at odds with the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), which has sought to maintain good relations with Ankara.
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