Ankara - At least 11 people were killed and 72 injured in a bomb explosion Sunday night in Istanbul with Turkish intelligence agencies believing that Kurdish separatists may be behind the blasts, the private NTV television station reported.

The main explosion on a crowded pedestrian street in the Istanbul suburb of Gungoren was preceded by a small blast in a telephone booth. Witnesses said many people had gone to inspect the first small blast when the second more powerful bomb exploded at around 9:45 pm (1645 GMT).

There were reports of two suspicious packages being in the pedestrianised street that was closed to vehicle traffic but it was not clear whether the explosions were the result of the packages or whether a suicide bomber was involved.

NTV quoted intelligence officals as saying they believed the Kurdish Workers' Party (PKK) may have been behind the attack due to the similarity in the style of the attack, in particular the way in which a small explosion was followed by a large bomb blast. (dpa)