WATCH: Car bomb wounds over 40 in Diyarbakir, southeast Turkey
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region (Kurdistan24) – An explosion on Friday hit the center of Diyarbakir Province in the southeast of Turkey, injuring over 40 people, according to security sources.
Following the blast, ambulances rushed to the scene in the Baglar district of Diyarbakir and transported the wounded to the hospital.
The explosion comes hours after the pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) Co-chair Selahattin Demirtas was arrested at his home in Diyarbakir, and several other Kurdish MPs were detained elsewhere in the country.
Security sources in the area revealed the number of injured people rose over 40.
The provincial governor’s office confirmed the explosion was caused by a car bomb, claiming the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) “took responsibility” for the attack.
In a written statement, the office mentioned the explosion occurred around 8:00 a.m. local time near a police facility.
The violence was later claimed by the Islamic State.
Diyarbakir is the largest city in the mainly Kurdish areas of Turkey’s southeast.
In a statement, President of the Kurdistan Region Masoud Barzani condemned the explosion and sent his condolences to the family of the victims as well as wishing them a speedy recovery.
He added violence won’t solve political issues in the interest of the Kurdish cause, peace, and co-existence, but rather it deepens the problems.
Additionally, the Prime Minister of Turkey Binali Yildirim told local media eight people had been killed in the car bomb, two of them policemen.
The PKK is labeled a terrorist organization by Turkey, the European Union, and the United States.
Violence between PKK guerrillas and Turkish forces in eastern Turkey (Bakur) has risen notably in the aftermath of the July 15 failed military coup attempt.
A two-year held ceasefire and peace negotiations mediated by the HDP between the PKK and the Turkish government collapsed in August 2015.
The collapse lead to months-long clashes in a dozen Kurdish cities between the two sides that left hundreds, including civilians, dead.
Editing by Karzan Sulaivany