Turkish blast kills 3 in possible attack

Explosion rips through Turkish capital NEW: A car explodes in central Ankara, the interior minister saysNEW: The possibility that it was a terror attack is high, he saysWounded people are taken to nearby hospitals

(CNN) -- Three people died Tuesday in an explosion in the Turkish capital Ankara, in what may have been a terror attack, Interior Minister Idris Naim Sahin told CNN sister network CNN Turk.

"There was a powerful explosion in a car that was parked," the minister said, citing preliminary information. "The possibility that it was a terrorist attack is high."

He said it was also possible that a gas explosion had caused the blast, "though that is a weak possibility."

The explosion shook a crowded street in the center of Ankara, damaging vehicles and buildings on Kumrular Street near the Kizilay metro station, the official Anatolia news agency reported.

An eyewitness described the scene as "terrible" and "very chaotic."

"Cars were exploding. Pieces were spreading around. We were terrified," the unnamed witness told CNN Turk.

Deputy Prime Minister Besir Atalay said earlier there were no deaths, but 15 people were wounded, Anatolia reported.

Ankara governor Alaaddin Yuksel said officials, including police and a prosecutor, were investigating the cause of the blast.

He said many cars were parked on the street with garbage bags under them at the time of the explosion.

Five people are in surgery, he added.

An emergency services doctor at Numune Hospital in Ankara said 10 injured people were brought to the hospital. One was in intensive care, one was in the burn unit and the other eight have light injuries, said the doctor.

None of the injuries are life-threatening, said the doctor, who did not give a name. Doctors in state hospitals are not allowed to speak to the media.

The explosion took place in front of the Cankaya municipal building, local official Bulent Tanik said on Turkish television.

He cited eyewitnesses as saying a burning gas tank had been thrown out a window onto the street.

Police have sealed off the street, Anatolia reported.

--CNN's Yesim Comert and Talia Kayali contributed to this report.

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Suspect held in attack on tourists in Kenya

British couple attacked in KenyaSTORY HIGHLIGHTSPolice say a suspect linked to the killing of a British tourist was detainedThe dead man's wife was kidnappedThe attack happened Sunday at a remote safari lodgeRELATED TOPICSKenyaBritain's Foreign and Commonwealth Office (CNN) -- Kenyan police have detained a suspect in connection with the killing of a British tourist and the kidnapping of his wife, police spokesman Charles Owino told CNN Tuesday.

The attack happened at a remote safari lodge on the coast, near the border with Somalia.

About 12:30 a.m. Sunday, bandits attacked the couple, who were staying at Kiwayu Safari Village, a tourist resort on Kiwayu Island in Kiyunga division of Lamu west district on the coast, Kenyan police said.

During the attack, David Tebbut was shot dead and his wife, Judith Tebbut, was abducted, police said. The couple had arrived at the hotel Saturday afternoon after spending a week in the Masai Mara game reserve in southwestern Kenya. They were the sole guests in the hotel, which has cloth doors.

"From what we can be able to gather, he resisted, and that's why he was shot dead," Kenyan Police Commissioner Mathew Iteere said Sunday. "Maybe they wanted to take the two, but he resisted and that's why he was shot dead."

Iteere said the motive was not known. "We are treating it just as a bandit attack," he said.

A travel website lists rates at the 18-cottage resort as beginning at $400 per night.

A maritime security source aware of the situation said Sunday that Islamic militants probably took Judith Tebbut by boat toward Ras Kamboni in Somalia.

From CNN's Divina Mims

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