Suicide bomb strikes police vehicle near bus stop in Diyarbakir, Turkey - 7 killed, 27 injured

RT
Thu, 31 Mar 2016 17:43 UTC

© Ilyas Akengin / Agence France-Presse

Turkish special force police officers walk at the site of a bomb attack in Diyarbakir, southeastern Turkey, on March 31, 2016.

At least seven police officers have been killed and 27 people injured after a suicide car bomber hit a police bus in the mainly Kurdish-populated city of Diyarbakir, Turkey, according to Minister of Development Cevdet Yılmaz.

Thirteen police personnel and 14 civilians are among those injured, the minister said in a statement cited by local TV channels. The attack took place near a bus stop, which explains the high number of civilian casualties.

#BREAKINGA car bomb attack on a #Turkish security convoy/ bus just in the center of #Diyarbakir. pic.twitter.com/m5ilyATZDI

— taylieli (@taylieli) March 31, 2016

Many ambulances have been sent to the scene.

VIDEO: Resident of Diyarbakir @SidarSimsek films several emergency vehicles at the scene of the explosion.pic.twitter.com/601uK8B7br

— Conflict News (@Conflicts) March 31, 2016

The attacked police bus was on its way to the Turkish southern city of Sanliurfa, local media report.

The blast comes as Turkey continues its crackdown on Kurds in the country's southeast. Ankara launched a military operation against Kurdish militants linked to the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) in summer 2015. Since then, the violence that ended a two-year truce has already resulted in hundreds of civilian casualties according to human rights NGOs.