Islamic State claims attack on Kurdish town on Syria's border; 40 dead

QAMISHLI, Syria, July 27 (UPI) -- Two bombings in the predominately Kurdish city of Qamishli, Syria, killed at least 40 people and injured at least 100 others Wednesday, Syrian state television said.

Kurdish news agency Rudaw cited state TV as reporting that the attacks took place in the Gharbi neighborhood of the city.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported one of the two explosions targeted a government building housing the security headquarters of the Kurdish administration controlling the Rojava province.

That blast struck a neighborhood of government offices and the headquarters of the Democratic Union Party; the second hit a Kurdish military outpost. Initial reports indicate security forces and civilians were among the casualties.

The Islamic State claimed responsibility for the attack through a statement on its Aamaq news agency website, adding it deliberately targeted Kurdish security forces.

Kurdish forces have been fighting IS -- also identified as Daesh, ISIS and ISIL -- alongside Iraqi troops and the U.S.-led coalition. Qamishli, a city of about 185,000 along the border with Turkey, has been a frequent target of IS attacks.