Ankara-Tehran Train Targeted by Mine Blast in Turkey
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – A remote-controlled mine was detonated on a railroad line east of Turkey on Thursday, causing damage to a train travelling from Ankara to Tehran, a local official said.
The Trans-Asian service was travelling between Genc in Turkey's eastern province of Bingol and Suveren, Igdir province, when it was "targeted by suspected (Kurdistan Workers' Party) PKK militants," Bingol Governor Yavuz Selim Kosger told the Anadolu Agency.
The remote-controlled mine, laid under the tracks, caused damages to some of the train cars and the railroad, but the train could continue its journey.
Bingol governor said the attack has not inflicted any casualties.
The state-run Anadolu Agency laid the blame for the attack on the PKK militants.
In the meantime, Turkish Army said on Thursday that at least three Turkish soldiers were killed in an attack on a team of troops in southeast of the country.
The Turkish General Staff said the "atrocious" attack happened in Sirnak province and blamed the PKK for the deaths.
The incident comes against the backdrop of renewed violence between Turkish forces and the PKK, whose elements have long been engaged in militancy in southeastern Turkey.
Turkey recently launched airstrikes allegedly against the PKK bases in northern Iraq as well as positions held by the Takfiri ISIL terrorists in Syria after a July 21 bomb attack that left 32 people dead in the southwestern town of Suruc.