Deadly blasts hit Turkey hotels

Explosions have hit two Istanbul hotels early Tuesday, killing one person, Turkish police say.

At least six other people have been injured in the blasts, police have said.

The blasts went off about 1:40 a.m. (10.40 p.m. Monday GMT, 6:40 p.m. Monday ET) at tourist hotels in two Istanbul neighborhoods.

The two simultaneous explosions rocked the small hotels, which often host tourists from former Soviet republics.

One of the targeted hotels, Pars, said it received an anonymous call only 10 minutes before the explosion saying there was a bomb in a room, The Associated Press reports.

The other target, Holiday Hotel, is located in the Laleli district, home to inexpensive hotels and clothing stores catering to eastern European tourists.

"It appears to be a terrorist attack," Police Chief Celalettin Cerrah told the Anatolia news agency.

A third explosion later rocked a gas plant, according to AP.

Authorities said a fire at the liquefied petroleum gas plant, where cooking gas canisters are filled, was under control, private NTV television reported.

The blast at the plant, on the outskirts of Istanbul, took place shortly after an anonymous bomb threat, police said. It was not clear if there were any casualties.

A string of bombings in Istanbul in November 2003 targeted two synagogues, a British-owned bank and the British consulate.

The blasts killed more than 70 people, including the British consul general, and wounded hundreds.

Source: Agencies