Turkish soldier seized by rebels

Security has been heightened in Turkey's east amid rising unrest

Kurdish rebels have kidnapped a Turkish soldier after robbing dozens of vehicles at a temporary roadblock in eastern Turkey, Turkish officials say.

The rebel checkpoint was set up between the towns of Tunceli and Pulumur.

Kurdish rebels have been known to kill Turkish soldiers by the roadside after finding them at checkpoints. Others they have taken hostage for months.

There has recently been a sharp rise in rebel activity in south-eastern Turkey, BBC correspondent Jonny Dymond reports.

Kidnapping was once common in the conflict between Kurdish paramilitaries and the Turkish state, with nocturnal roadblocks set up in the most turbulent provinces underlining the state's lack of control over its territory.

This latest incident is a nasty reminder of the insurgency that claimed more than 35,000 lives in the 1980s and 1990s, our correspondent says.

More than 40 cars were stopped on the road between Tunceli and Pulumur.

The drivers were robbed and a soldier was taken from one of them and abducted.

The vast majority of soldiers serving in Turkey's east are conscripts carrying out mandatory national service.