Turkish authorities on Saturday blamed Kurdish militants for a car bombing which rocked the southeastern province of Sanliurfa, close to the Syrian border, and detained 26 people in connection with the attack.

The explosion struck the district of Viransehir on Friday night, killing a 10-year-old and a neighborhood watch guard.

The office said 26 people were detained including the suspected owner of the car used in the blast, which Dogan news agency said was caused by a ton of explosives.

Some 17 people were also injured in the attack on a housing complex where courthouse workers and security personnel live.

Sanliurfa governor Gungor Azim Tuna told the official news agency Anadolu that the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) was to blame.

“We believe this terror attack was conducted by the PKK terror organization,” Tuna said.

The PKK is proscribed by Ankara, the United States and the European Union as a terror group.

Source: AFP