Timeline: Turkey unrest ahead of vote

Two Turkish policemen and seven Islamic State (IS) suspects were killed on Monday in a gun battle around a militant hideout in the city of Diyarbakir.

Police have been on the hunt for IS militants since suicide bombings on an Ankara peace rally on 10 October killed 102 people, the deadliest attack in Turkey's modern history.

The carnage marked a sharp escalation of the unrest that has plagued Turkey since an attack on a border town in July sparked an anti-terror campaign against Kurdish militiamen and IS militants.

Here are the main developments:

July

- 20: Thirty-four people are killed in a suicide bombing in the mainly Kurdish town of Suruc near the Syrian border, with Turkish officials blaming IS. 

- 22: Militants from the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) – which designated a terrorist group by Turkey, the EU, the US and other countries - kill two Turkish policemen to avenge the attack. PKK militants accuse Ankara of "complicity" with IS.

- 24: Turkish jets bomb IS targets in Syria for the first time, and PKK militants in northern Iraq. More than 1,000 suspects are arrested.

- 25: PKK's military wing says conditions for maintaining a ceasefire "have been eliminated" and escalate attacks.  

- 28: President Recep Tayyip Erdogan says "it is not possible" to pursue the peace process with the PKK while militants continue their attacks.

August

5: Turkey joins the US-led coalition against IS in Syria. US warplanes bomb IS targets from a Turkish base for the first time.

10: Five police are killed in a roadside bombing and a soldier dies in an attack on a military helicopter. Both attacks are blamed on the PKK. Two women open fire at the US consulate in an attack claimed by a far-left group. 

19: Eight soldiers are killed in a bombing in the southeastern province of Siirt blamed on the PKK. The authorities say around 160 police and soldiers have been killed in Kurdish militant attacks since the peace process collapsed.

21: Erdogan calls 1 November poll after coalition talks fail.

September

9: The leader of Turkey's main pro-Kurdish Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) warns the country is being dragged into a "civil war".

10: Pro-Kurdish MPs are barred from the southeastern city of Cizre, under curfew as part of a military operation against PKK militants. The curfew is lifted on 12 September.

17: Over 10,000 people rally against terrorism in Ankara, in a reference to PKK and IS. A similar demonstration in Istanbul three days later attracts over 100,000.

22: Two Kurdish ministers quit the cabinet.

October

10: Two suicide bombers blow themselves up at a pro-Kurdish peace rally near Ankara's main train station, killing 102 people. The government blames IS.

The PKK announces it is halting all militant attacks against Turkish forces ahead of the election.

19: Four suspects are held over the Ankara bombings.

24: Media reports say police are hunting an IS cell suspected of plotting major attacks.

26: Two policemen are killed after they launch a raid on a suspected IS hideout in Diyarbakir. Officials say seven militants are killed and 12 arrested.