Bomb attack injures 24 in SE Turkey, Ankara blames PKK

A bomb blast has injured 24 people in the southeastern Turkish province of Mardin amid the escalation of tensions between Ankara and the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK).

According to Turkey's state-run Anadolou news agency, the bomb attack targeted a bus carrying police forces in Mardin late Friday, injuring 24 people, including 10 policemen.

The attack was carried out by the PKK militants, the agency said, adding that the wounded were taken to Kiziltepe and Mardin hospitals to receive medical treatment.

Earlier in the day, the PKK supporters launched a rally in the city of Istanbul to protest against Ankara’s growing crackdown on Kurdish militants.

The demonstrators reportedly blocked the streets by lighting fires, and engaged in clashes with the police. Turkish forces used tear gas and water cannon to disperse the angry protesters.

The demo came after clashes between Turkish security forces and Kurdish militants claimed the lives of seven people, including a seven-year-old boy, in the southeast of the country.

The PKK has been fighting for an autonomous Kurdish region inside Turkey since the 1980s. The conflict has left tens of thousands of people dead.

There has been renewed conflict between the PKK and Turkish security forces since July. Turkey has been launching airstrikes against purported Daesh targets in Syria as well as PKK positions in Iraq after a Daesh bomb attack left 32 people dead in the southeastern Turkish town of Suruc on July 20.

Reports say that over 60 Turkish security personnel have lost their lives since the recent flare-up of clashes between Ankara and Kurdish militants in June.

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