Kurdish militant group PKK denies role in Istanbul bomb attack

'Our people and the democratic public know closely that we are not related to this incident,' they said

A member of the security forces walks near the scene after the explosion on busy pedestrian Istiklal street in Istanbul. Credit: Reuters Photo

The outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) on Monday denied any role in the deadly weekend attack in Istanbul.

"Our people and the democratic public know closely that we are not related to this incident, that we will not directly target civilians and that we do not accept actions targeting civilians," the group said in a statement published by the Firat news agency.

Firat is close to the PKK, which is listed as a terror group by Turkey and its Western allies.