Istanbul police alarmed over three bombs across city

The morning of Jan. 18 began with bomb denunciations for police and locals at three separate locations in Istanbul.

A cardboard box left on an Atatürk statue in the Maltepe district on the Asian side of the city was discovered, and security teams and a bomb squad were immediately dispatched to the scene after citizens called police. There was reportedly writing on the box saying those responsible for the Cizre incidents would be held accountable.

After the bomb squad defused the suspicious box amid high-security measures, police determined the device was a handmade pressure-induced grenade made from lighter fluid cylinders and containing fuel. The bomb pieces were taken by police for further investigation.

Another bomb exploded near an electric distribution unit on Millet Avenue in the Fatih district. No casualties were reported and police have launched an investigation into the incident.

In the Sultangazi district, another bomb was found in a package left by two masked people at a bus stop.  Police arrived at the scene and cordoned off the area after they had been notified of the package by citizens.

"YDG-H," was written on the package, which refers to the Patriotic Revolutionary Youth Movement, the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party's (PKK) so-called police unit.

The bomb was defused by the bomb squad.