Officials in Turkey say suspected Kurdish militants clashed with police before detonating a car bomb in the western city of Izmir.<br /><br /> A police officer and a court employee were killed, along with two of the suspected attackers.<br /><br /> Ten people were injured.<br /><br /> What happened?<br /><br /> The attackers’ car was stopped at a checkpoint near the city’s main courthouse.<br /><br /> This sparked a confrontation with the police. A car bomb was subsequently detonated.<br /><br /> Izmir police shot dead two of the attackers and are hunting a third, according to the state-run news agency Anadolu and police sources.<br /><br /> Two people believed to have sold the vehicle used in the attack to the assailants have reportedly been detained.<br /><br /> A second vehicle was destroyed in a controlled explosion.<br /><br /> Police reportedly think the attackers had planned to use it to escape.<br /><br /> Two suspected Kurdish militants have been killed after detonating a car bomb in #Izmir, Turkey https://t.co/JGSAHorJla— Sky News (@SkyNews) January 5, 2017<br /><br /> Turkish traffic policeman hailed as hero after helping to foil Izmir attack https://t.co/XLUZBXcRrK pic.twitter.com/MyMDPf717i— Middle East Eye (@MiddleEastEye) January 5, 2017<br /><br /> The context<br /><br /> The explosion and gunfire outside the main courthouse in Izmir have highlighted Turkey’s deteriorating security situation.<br /><br /> It comes five days after a gunman killed 39 people in a New Year’s Day mass shooting at a nightclub in Istanbul.<br /><br /> Much larger attack thwarted – officials<br /><br /> Deputy Prime Minister Veysi Kaynak said a much larger attack was apparently being planned.<br /><br /> This was based on the weapons found at the scene in Izmir.<br /><br /> The local governor said the arms included Kalashnikov rifles, hand grenades and ammunition for rocket-propelled grenade launchers.<br /><br /> Weapons found in #Izmir suggest larger attack planned:Turkish deputy PM#PKKhttps://t.co/6h8FVKTEAo pic.twitter.com/ivScUVoKXw— Yeni Şafak English (@yenisafakEN) January 5, 2017<br /><br /> Who was behind the attack?<br /><br /> Izmir governor Erol Ayyildiz says initial findings suggest that Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) militants were behind the attack.<br /><br /> NATO member Turkey is part of the US-led coalition fighting ISIL in Syria.<br /><br /> It is also battling an insurgency by the PKK in the mainly Kurdish southeast.<br /><br /> Ankara regularly targets PKK camps in northern Iraq.<br /><br /> Its military operations in Syria also aim to stop Kurdish militias it sees as an extension of the PKK from gaining territory there.<br /><br /> There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack in Izmir.<br /><br /> The liberal coastal city has largely escaped the violence that has plagued Istanbul and the capital Ankara in recent months.<br /><br /> What they are saying<br /><br /> “Based on the preparation, the weapons, the bombs and ammunition seized, it is understood that a big atrocity was being planned,” – Deputy Prime Minister Veysi Kaynak.<br />
