ANKARA -- The Turkish security forces seized on Saturday 150 kg of explosives in the province of Diyarbakir in southeastern Turkey, the semi-official Anatolia news agency reported.

Acting on a tip-off, the security forces found the A-4 type explosives in Topcular village of Hani town, Diyarbakir Governor Mustafa Toprak was quoted as saying, adding that the explosives were ready to go off when they were found.

Toprak said the explosives, which were planted by the militants of the outlawed Kurdish Workers' Party (PKK), were destroyed by expert teams.

The PKK, listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the United States and the European Union, took up arms in 1984 in an attempt to create an ethnic homeland in southeastern Turkey. Since then over 40,000 people have been killed in conflicts involving the group.