Turkey Police Station Bomb Blast: Deaths Reported, Kurdish Rebels Accused Of Attack

At least five people have been killed in south-eastern Turkey after a car bomb blast hit a police station Thursday, according to local media. The incident comes close on the heels of Tuesday’s suicide bomb attack in Istanbul’s Sultanahmet Square that killed at least 10 people.

Kurdish rebels from Kurdistan Worker’s Party (PKK) detonated the bomb at the entrance of a police building in Cinar town of Diyarbakir province, BBC reported, citing local media. The rebels then attacked the station with rocket launchers and firearms, injuring 39 people, the Associated Press (AP) reported, citing Turkish media. The blast also damaged nearby residential buildings.

The attack occurred early Thursday, and a woman and an infant were reportedly among those dead. Eight rebels were killed in clashes with police after the bombing, RT.com reported, citing local news channel Haber3.

However, no group has claimed responsibility for the attack, and authorities have not yet announced the death toll.

Another police station was also attacked with rocket launchers in Midyat town of Mardin province, according to the AP. No casualties were reported in that incident.

Rebels have been active in the Kurdish-dominated Diyarbakir province, which has witnessed violent clashes between PKK separatists and the Turkish army in recent months. A ceasefire between the army and the rebels fell apart in July, and Turkish fighter bombers have since targeted PKK bases in northern Iraq. Turkey — a part of the U.S.-led coalition carrying out airstrikes against the Islamic State group in Iraq and Syria — is accused of bombing PKK in the area.