ISIS terrorist outside Kobane (file)
ISIS terrorist outside Kobane (file)Reuters

An explosion hit the Turkish town of Suruc near the border with Syria on Monday, with local media reporting at least 28 killed by what is suspected as an Islamic State (ISIS) suicide bombing.

The blast took place in the garden of a culture center in Sanliurfa province's Suruc - which lies opposite the Syrian town of Kobane.

Just a short time later, a suicide bomber struck Kobane.

"A suicide bomber detonated a car bomb at a checkpoint in Kobane's south...there were two Kurdish forces killed in the explosion," said Rami Abdel Rahman, director of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

He told AFP the explosion took place shortly after the blast in the Turkish town of Suruc.

Kobane has been a symbol of resistance against the jihadists since ISIS fighters were driven out in January.

A Turkish government official told AFP that "the Turkish authorities have strong reason to believe that the terrorist attack was perpetrated by ISIS." He said the near simultaneous attack on Kobane across the border from Suruc "strengthens our suspicions."

In Suruc, the Turkish Hurriyet reports at least 27 were killed and an 18-year-old female suicide bomber from ISIS is suspected as being behind the blast.

At least 300 members of the Federation of Socialist Youth Associations (SGDF) were at the cultural center as part of an effort to rebuild Kobane, according to the paper.

ISIS has been clashing with Kurdish forces in Kobane over the border, with the Kurds recently having ousted the ISIS invaders from the strategic Kurdish border town.

Leyla Guven, deputy of the leftist pro-Kurdish HDP party, told Haberturk that "it's a big massacre. The probability of a suicide bomber is very high. Suspect information has been provided related to the number of deaths. Some say that everyone in the group died."

Suruc has reportedly been a key staging area for Kurds seeking to enter Kobane, in attempts to fortify the city which has been the target of repeated ISIS attacks in recent months.

AFP contributed to this report.