28 dead in a suicide attack on a Turkish border town

At least 28 people were killed on Monday in a suicide attack in a Turkish town on the Syrian border, with officials pointing the finger of blame at the Islamic State group. The blast ripped through a cultural centre in Suruc, a town opposite the Syrian flashpoint of Kobani – which was hit shortly afterwards by a suicide car bombing.

The force of the explosion in Suruc smashed the windows of a building in the centre of the city and set off a fire, witnesses said. Television footage showed several people lying on the ground covered in blood and ambulances rushing to the scene.

The interior ministry described the blast as a "terrorist attack" and vowed to find the perpetrators as soon as possible and bring them to justice. "The Turkish authorities have strong reason to believe that the terrorist attack was perpetrated by ISIS," a government official told AFP, using another name for IS (or ISIL). The official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the deadly attack in Kobani "strengthens our suspicions".

An official in the prime minister's office said 28 people were killed and nearly 100 injured in Suruc. "It is a suicide attack," the official told AFP, speaking on condition of anonymity.   (AFP)

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