Reuters
At least eight people have been killed and scores wounded in an explosion at a wedding ceremony in Turkey's southeastern province of Gaziantep, according security sources talking to Reuters news agency.
Gaziantep Governor Ali Yerlikaya told Turkey's Anadolu news agency that the "terror attack" took place in Akdere, in the city's Sahinbey district.
Gaziantep is about 64km (40 miles) from the Syrian border. A suicide bomber killed two policemen there in May.
The blast, which took place around 11pm local time in Akdere neighbourhood of Sahinbey district, was a "terror attack" and there are multiple casualties, Gaziantep Governor Ali Yerlikaya told state-run Anadolu news agency.
Ambulances have been dispatched to the scene, Yerlikaya added.
The explosion appeared to have been caused by a suicide bomber, Deputy Prime Minister Mehmet Simsek told broadcaster NTV.
Fighters from Islamic State of Iraq and Levant group (ISIL, also known as ISIS) are believed to be behind the attack, Governing AK party's Gaziantep MP, Samil Tayyar, said on Twitter.
In northern Syria, just south of Gaziantep, there has been heavy fighting between Syrian Kurdish YPG forces and IS jihadist militants.
The border town of Kobane was wrested back from IS control by Kurdish-led forces in January 2015, after months of bitter fighting.
There has been a spate of bombings in eastern Turkey in recent months blamed on the rebel Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK).
Source : Al Jazeera and agencies
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