At least eight people were killed and dozens wounded, including police officers, after a car bomb believed to have been planted by Kurdish fighters exploded close to a police station in the southeastern Turkish city of Gaziantep, a senior Turkish politician and security sources say.

"Unfortunately we lost eight citizens and nearly 60 people are getting treated at several hospitals according to our initial information," Erdal Ata, Gaziantep's governor, told reporters.

The powerful blast went off close to a police station, setting fire to several vehicles including a city bus carrying three of the victims, the mayor told local NTV news channel.

Al Jazeera's Stefanie Dekker, reporting from Antakya in Turkey's southeast, said the casualty toll was likely to rise.
"We are hearing of eight people dead and 50 injured. Most people who were hurt were in their cars or getting on buses near the scene of the explosion," Dekker said.

Dekker said the governor said he believed it was a timed bomb that was placed in that car, and that the car had an Istanbul number plate.

We are also hearing of police officers that are injured and a lot of burn victims still in hospital, she said.

'Kurdish' link

There was no immediate claim of responsibility but, "Kurdish militants are believed to be behind the attack," a security source told Reuters news agency.

Omer Celik, deputy chairman of the ruling AK Party, blamed the PKK for the attacks and called for calm.

"The PKK ... is trying to provoke our citizens by targeting the civilian population directly. Our citizens must remain cool-headed," Omer Celik, deputy chairman of the ruling AK Party, wrote in his Twitter account.

In a separate incident on Monday in the south-east province of Hakkari, bordering Iraq and Iran, two soldiers were killed when a landmine detonated through remote control by PKK rebels blew up, authorities said.

Southeastern Turkey has seen frequent attacks by the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), designated a terrorist group by Turkey, the United States and European Union.

The attacks on Monday comes amid intensified fighting between the Kurdish fighters and Turkish troops in the volatile south-east region, where the PKK launched a battle for autonomy 28 years ago.

Ankara launched an all-out offensive last month against the PKK after a series of assaults against troops in the south-east.

At least 115 fighters have been killed since the offensive began on July 23, Turkish authorities said, but PKK related incidents appear to have intensified since then.

Gaziantep is situated near the Syrian border, where Turkey has opened a centre to receive international aid for Syrian refugees fleeing the uprising against President Bashar al-Assad.

Turkey initially cultivated good relations with Assad's administration but relations have deteriorated sharply since the Syrian uprising began.

Turkey suspects a major Syrian Kurdish movement, the Democratic Union Party (PYD), of having links with the PKK.

Turkish analysts believe Assad let the PYD take control of security of some towns in northern Syria to prevent locals from joining the opposition Free Syrian Army.

Ankara believes PKK fighters are receiving arms from Syrian forces, reports Reuters.

PHOTO CAPTION

Firefighters and police officers work at the scene of an explosion in the southeastern Turkish town of Gaziantep August 20, 2012.

Al-Jazeera