Two killed, over 100 injured in blasts at Turkey party rally

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AFP Diyarbakir
Last Updated : Jun 06 2015 | 1:22 AM IST
Two people were killed and over 100 wounded in explosions today at a rally by the pro-Kurdish People's Democratic Party (HDP) in southeastern Turkey, adding to tensions two days ahead of tight legislative polls.
The two successive blasts rocked the rally in the city of Diyarbakir of the HDP, which has been the target of repeated attacks in a tightly-fought campaign.
Ambulances arrived at the scene to take the injured away, with chaos on the square where the rally was due to be held, an AFP correspondent said.
Two people were killed and over 100 people were also wounded, said Agriculture Minister Mehdi Eker, who frequently represents the government on issues in the region, quoted by the Anatolia news agency.
Initial reports said that the explosions were blamed on an electrical transformer at the rally.
However Energy Minister Taner Yildiz said in televised comments that the nature of the damage indicated that the blasts had likely been caused by an external factor.
"It suggests there was an outside agent," he said, without giving further details.
Medical sources told AFP in Diyarbakir that 133 people had been taken to two hospitals in the city, 25 of them in a serious condition.
Eight people were undergoing emergency surgery, they added.
Reports said that there was a 10 minute space between the two blasts, and that it was the second which caused the fatal damage.
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First Published: Jun 06 2015 | 1:22 AM IST

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