Kurdish rebel group claims responsibility for Turkey bombings - report

Istanbul: A Kurdish rebel group has claimed responsibility for bomb attacks that struck Turkey last week, a news agency said.

The first attack in Mersin occurred when a suspected suicide bomber detonated a bomb in a car, wounding 12 police officers and killing himself.

Sixteen people, including eight police officers and three soldiers, were wounded two days later when a car bomb exploded through a minibus in Izmir.

Turkish media said on Sunday eight people had been detained in connection with the Izmir attack.

The Firat news agency reported the Kurdistan Freedom Hawks (TAK) as saying their militants had carried out both attacks.

The shadowy TAK group is believed to have close links to the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) guerrillas.