Car bomb attack (illustration)
Car bomb attack (illustration)SRGC/AFP

At least one person was killed Tuesday when a large bomb went off on the Syrian side of the country's border with Turkey. Dozens were said to have been injured in the blast, reports said.

The explosion took place at a roadblock said to be held by Syrian rebels, outside an area they control. Photos showed a vehicle mangled in the bombing, indicated that it was a car bomb that had been used in the attack. It's not clear who – a rival rebel group, Syrian soldiers, or others – was behind the attack. According to human rights groups, the bombing's victims were all civilians who had been queuing up to cross into Turkey.

It also wasn't clear if the attack was connected to the latest violence in the border area. On Monday, Turkish warplanes shot down a Syrian helicopter that had crossed the border. The Syrian helicopter was detected two kilometers within Turkish airspace, Turkish officials said. Tensions have been high between Turkey and Syria for some time. Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s administration has been highly critical of Syrian President Bashar Assad’s regime. Turkey has provided support to factions within the rebel Free Syrian Army, and has supported military intervention in Syria.

There have been several attacks in this area of the Turkish-Syrian border. In February, a bomb went off that killed both Syrians and Turks. In April, Syrian army planes bombed the area.