Turkey blames blast on Kurdish militants, arrests 22, including suspected bomber

bobmb explosion in Istanbul

ISTANBUL, Nov 14 (Reuters) - Turkey's government blamed Kurdish militants on Monday for a blast that killed six people in Istanbul's main shopping street, and said police had detained 22 suspects, including the person suspected to have planted the bomb.

State broadcaster TRT released footage of police escorting a woman, the main suspect, from an apartment after an overnight raid.

Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu said the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) and the Syrian Kurdish YPG militia, which Ankara says is a wing of the PKK, were responsible for the attack on the historic and bustling Istiklal Avenue on Sunday.

Soylu said the order was given in Kobani and the bomber passed through Afrin - both cities in northern Syria where Turkish forces have carried out operations against the YPG in recent years.

The woman, with curly hair and in a purple jumper with the words 'New York' on it, was shown being brought into police headquarters in the TRT footage. Police used a dog to search the apartment and found gold, money and ammunition, it showed.

Six Turkish citizens, two members each of three families, were killed in the attack. No group has claimed responsibility...