Göle

The winter has revealed its true colors in Turkey's east as the eastern province of Ardahan's Göle district has become the coldest place in the country as of Dec. 7, recording a temperature of minus 26.4 degrees Celsius.

Spending time mostly indoors, residents of Göle, which turned into a "white zone," tried to secure their vehicles from freezing by putting blankets on them.

Various historical artifacts have been seized in anti-smuggling operations across Turkey, security sources said on March 1.

Five mosaic paintings believed to be historical artifacts were seized in the southern province of Mersin, and a suspect was arrested, according to the local gendarmerie command.

Some 127 zones in 15 provinces in eastern Turkey have so far been declared "temporary military secure zones," amid tightened security measures against outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) attacks.

While 15 of the zones have been reopened to civilian access after being closed, 111 areas continue to be out-of-bounds for civilians trying to enter.

The outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) has killed a bus driver who attempted to avoid an illegal checkpoint it had set up in the eastern province of Erzurum. 

Unidentified PKK militants intercepted a road between Erzurum's De?irmenlidere and Ak?ar districts at around 7 a.m. on Aug. 17 and stopped a passenger bus traveling from the northeastern province of Ardahan to Istanbul.