Turkey: At least 11 killed, over 226 wounded in PKK car bomb attack

Hours later, another car bombing hit police headquarters in the eastern Turkish city of Elazig early today, killing at
least three police office officers and wounding close to 100 people, the state-run Anadolu Agency said.

The third attack was a roadside blast targeted a military vehicle carrying soldiers in the southeast of the country.

Video footage showed a large plume of smoke rising from the area. Cars were overturned and the windows of the
four-story building and its wings were blown out.

Prime Minister Binali Yildirim traveled to Elazig to visit the site of the bombing as well as those wounded in the
attack. He told reporters there that both the PKK and the Gulen movement were directed by the same “intelligence” intent on causing Turkey harm, without elaborating.

“The (Gulen movement) has lost its assertiveness and has handed over the duty to the (PKK),” Yildirim said. “The
intelligence that directs them is the same. When one’s duty ends, the other takes up the duty.”

The attack comes a few days after six people were killed when a car bomb was detonated in Diyarbakir city located in South East Turkey. Two civilians and four police officers were among the dead. The Turkish authorities blamed the PKK for the attack. Last week, PKK commander Cemil Bayik threatened increased attacks against police in Turkish cities.

Anadolu said that after the bombing police were sent to the scene, identifying a militant named MO suspected of bringing the car bomb in front of the police station. He had been wounded and was detained and taken to the main police headquarters in Van city for questioning, it said.

Turkey has been the target of numerous attacks by the PKK militant outfit. The group has been blamed by the Turkish government for waging war against the country. The PKK claims to fight for self determination of Kurds in Turkey and has carried out numerous attacks chiefly targeting Turkish military units. PKK has also been involved in clashes against the Turkish military since the collapse of a ceasefire in 2015.But Van, a city with a mixed Kurdish and Turkish population and a popular tourist destination, has generally been spared the worst of attacks like those seen in the nearby city of Diyarbakir.

Although the PKK has been designated a terrorist organisation by Turkey, NATO and the US, it has been given the designation by the United Nations adn countries like India, China, and Russia. Other than being involved in an insurgency in Turkey, the PKK is also active in the Kurdish regions of Iraq and Syria. Due to their presence in both the countries, they have engaged the Islamic State on numerous occasions.

Tens of thousands of people have died in the conflict since the PKK took up arms for autonomy in southeast Turkey in 1984. Turkey and its allies consider the PKK a terrorist organization.

(With inputs from AP and AFP)