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(AP) — Eight Turkish troops taken hostage by Kurdish rebels after a deadly ambush have been charged with neglecting their duty during the clash, a defense attorney said Sunday.

The Oct. 21 ambush, which killed 12 other soldiers, had increased pressure on Turkey's government stage a cross-border offensive against Kurdish rebel bases in northern Iraq — an operation the U.S. has discouraged for fear of destabilizing a relatively calm part of Iraq.

Rebels released the eight captive soldiers earlier this month. They were charged Saturday with "disobedience that could lead to a major catastrophe" and "undermining military discipline," said lawyer Ramazan Korkmaz, who represents the soldiers. Two of the soldiers also face a charge of "escaping abroad."
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Korkmaz, who was not allowed to go through the court file but was present at Saturday's hearing, said the soldiers were accused of "not properly fulfilling their national duty."

The soldiers told the court that they had run out of ammunition and some of their weapons were not working when the rebels took them hostage, Korkmaz said. There was no further explanation of why the charges were brought.

Last week, Justice Minister Mehmet Ali Sahin suggested that the soldiers should have fought to the death rather than allowed themselves to be captured.

"I could not accept the fact that these soldiers went with the terrorists that night after the operation," Sahin said. "Our soldier is the one who ought to risk falling as a martyr while protecting his homeland."

Sahin stopped short of saying the men had surrendered, however.

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