ANKARA, Turkey (AP) – A string of bombings, blamed on Kurdish rebels and targeting Turkey’s security forces, killed at least 11 people and wounded 226 others, officials said Thursday.
Two of the attacks were car bombings that hit police stations in eastern Turkey, while a third – a roadside blast – targeted a military vehicle carrying soldiers in the southeast of the country.
Authorities say the assaults were carried out by the Kurdistan Workers’ Party, or PKK, which has launched a campaign of car bombings targeting police stations or roadside bomb attacks security force vehicles. Last week, PKK commander Cemil Bayik threatened increased attacks against police in Turkish cities.
The wave of attacks come as Turkey is focused on a clampdown on suspected followers of a movement led by U.S.-based Muslim cleric Fethullah Gulen, which the government accuses of orchestrating a failed military coup last month, that killed at least 270 people.
The first car bombing hit a police station in the eastern province of Van late Wednesday, killing a police officer and two civilians. At least 73 other people – 53 civilians and 20 police officers – were wounded, officials said.