Two dead after bomb attack in Turkey's Gaziantep

A bomb exploded on Sunday outside police headquarters in the southeastern Turkish city of Gaziantep close to the Syrian border, killing one policeman and wounding 24 other people, the local governor said. Six were reportedly in critical condition.

Gaziantep regional governor Ali Yerlikaya was quoted by Turkish media as saying nine of those wounded were police. NTV television said the explosion was caused by a car bomb and had been followed by sounds of gunfire.

Television pictures showed chaotic scenes outside the imposing police headquarters in Gaziantep as ambulances rushed to help wounded lying on the ground.

A Turkish government security source told Middle East Eye that an Islamic State (IS) member called Ismael Gonesh was responsible for the attack.

The area around the police headquarters where the attack took place contains the Gaziantep municipal offices, which are under police guard, and the surrounding streets mostly contain shops and offices rather than residential blocks. Gaziantep football stadium is also about 300 metres from the police headquarters.

MEE understands that Turkish police received information about the Gaziantep bombing seven minutes before it took place but were unable to prevent it.

IS is known to have sleeper cells in Gaziantep, which has a population of around 1.6 million, including around 325,000 Syrians, according to the latest Turkish government figures.

The attack comes with Turkey on edge after two deadly attacks in Istanbul this year blamed on IS and a pair of attacks in Ankara that were claimed by Kurdish militants and killed dozens.

Fatma Sahin, the mayor of Gaziantep, tweeted: "Our city of Gaziantep will remain strong and will overcome these difficult times."

Gaziantep Chamber of Industry Chairman, Adil Sani Konukoğlu, condemned the attack, stating that police officers and citizens were deeply saddened by the police officers killed and the injured.

"Terrorism knows no humanity, and has a ugly, brutal and treacherous face - it has shown that once again," he said.

Gaziantep has been making strides to build itself as a hub of industry in recent years, with a modern university, restoration of heritage buildings in the old city centre, and investment in public spaces. But it has struggled against IS sleeper cells - police have previously carried out raids in which IS suspects have blown themselves up in the city.

Police security has been stepped up across the country on Sunday as Turkish leftist and labour activists prepare to celebrate May Day, an event that often ends in clashes with security forces.

Additional reporting by Ibrahim Jawdat in Gaziantep