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DIYARBAKIR, Turkey (AP) — Two British journalists were detained along with their fixer while reporting from the main city in Turkey's mostly Kurdish southeast, where renewed fighting between the security forces and Kurdish rebels has killed scores of people, officials and reports said Friday.
Vice News spokesman confirmed that two of its journalists and their fixer were detained in Diyarbakir city late on Thursday. He said Vice News was working with authorities to secure their immediate release.
Turkish media identified the journalists as correspondent Jake Hanrahan and cameraman Philip Pendlebury.
An official from the Diyarbakir governor's office said that the journalists were in custody at police's anti-terrorism department for filming without first seeking "media accreditation" from Turkish authorities. He spoke on condition of anonymity because of rules that bar officials from speaking to journalists.
The three were detained in Diyarbakir's Baglar district where Kurdish youths frequently clash with security officials.
Some 60 soldiers, police and village guards have been killed since July in the renewed fighting between the rebels of the Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK, and the security forces, which wrecked a 2 1/2-year-old peace process. Around 90 rebels have also been killed, according to state-run media.
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