An explosion was heard Sunday in the Turkish capital Ankara, close to parliament which was due to open its new session later in the day, an AFP correspondent reported.

The Turkish interior ministry has termed the blast in the capital as a 'terrorist attack'.

"Two terrorists arrived in a light military vehicle at around 9:30 am (0630 GMT), in front of the entrance gate of the General Directorate of Security of our Ministry of the Interior, and carried out a bomb attack," the ministry said.

Turkish media reported that gunfire was also heard in the area, with emergency services rushing to the scene.

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