Bomb explosion kills one in Turkish port of Izmir

ISTANBUL, Oct 2 (Reuters) A bomb killed one person and wounded three people today in the Turkish port of Izmir, police said, just hours after another device injured two people.

There were no immediate claims of responsibility for the blasts.

Kurdish separatist rebels have carried out attacks in Izmir and the Aegean region in the past.

The second explosion occurred outside a bank in a suburb of Izmir, Turkey's third largest city. Television images showed debris on the ground and broken shop windows.

The NTV channel said there were reports that the bomb had been thrown from a motorcycle.

''There is one dead and three injured. Fire squads and ambulances are present at the scene,'' a police spokesman told Reuters.

Earlier, a percussion device exploded in a rubbish bin in front of a shopping centre injuring two people, one of them seriously.

A series of violent groups including Kurdish separatists, far-left militants and radical Islamists operate in Turkey and carry out mostly small attacks from time to time.

Yesterday, the head of Turkey's powerful armed forces, General Yasar Buyukanit, said there would be no respite in the decades-long struggle against Kurdish separatist guerrillas in a conflict that has cost more than 30,000 lives.

The Aegean region noted for its holiday resorts popular with Western tourists.

REUTERS ARB PM1540