Blast kills 13 near Turkey-Syria border

The incident occurred on Monday at the Cilvegozu border post, which is one of the main crossing points for Syrian refugees into the neighboring country, Turkish officials said.
 
"We have unfortunately lost 13 people: three of them Turks and rest Syrians," Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said after unidentified explosives triggered the "powerful blast."
 
He added that 27 people were also severely injured during the blast.
 
Witnesses said they saw the Syrian-registered vehicle, which was travelling from the direction of Syria, drive up to the post shortly before the explosion.
 
Deputy Prime Minister Bulent Arinc said the government was investigating the incident, adding that "all possibilities are on the table, including political motives."
 
"The information that we have for now is that a minibus with Syrian number plates coming from the other side exploded. It was a powerful explosion," Arinc added.
 
"But whether this was a vehicle laden with explosives or another type of explosion, I think, at the latest, will become clear tomorrow," he stated.
 
Syria has been experiencing unrest since March 2011. Many people, including large numbers of Army and security personnel, have been killed in the violence.
 
The Syrian government has said that the chaos is being orchestrated from outside the country, and that a very large number of the militants operating in the country are foreign nationals.
 
And several international human rights organizations say the foreign-sponsored militants have committed war crimes.
 
On January 14, the International Rescue Committee (IRC) said in a 23-page report that more than 600,000 Syrians have fled the country because of violence, including gang rape.
 
The New York-based organization described the level of rape and sexual violence taking place in the conflict zones in Syria as "horrific."