The death toll from the Istanbul twin bombings near a major football stadium has risen to 44, Turkish Health Minister Recep Akdag said Monday.

The late Saturday attacks saw a car bomb explode outside the home stadium of football giants Besiktas and less than a minute later, a suicide bomber blew himself up near a group of police at a nearby park.

"It is very painful that we lost 36 of our police officers and eight civilians in a bloody attack," Akdag told parliament, Dogan news agency reported.

The blasts also injured 166 people and were claimed by the Kurdistan Freedom Falcons (Tak), which is seen as a radical offshoot of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK).

Turkey has been hit by multiple attacks this year blamed on Kurdish militants and Islamic State jihadists.

The Tak group has claimed three major strikes this year.

Two were in Ankara: one on February 17 that left 28 dead and another on March 13 that killed 34; as well as a car bombing in Istanbul on June 7 in which 11 people died. </s> Forensic officials work at the scene of explosions near the Besiktas football club stadium after attacks in Istanbul, late Saturday, Dec. 10, 2016. Two explosions struck Saturday night outside a major soccer stadium in Istanbul after fans had gone home, an attack that wounded about 20 police officers, Turkish authorities said. Turkish authorities have banned distribution of images relating to the Istanbul explosions within Turkey.

ISTANBUL -- Turkey has declared a national day of mourning after twin blasts in Istanbul killed 29 people and wounded 166 others near a soccer stadium.

The Sunday statement from Prime Minister Binali Yildirim's office also ordered flags to fly at half-staff across the country and at Turkey's foreign missions.

Twin attacks Saturday night by a car bomber and a suicide bomber near Istanbul's Besiktas soccer stadium were the latest large-scale assault to traumatize a nation confronting an array of security threats. There was no immediate claim of responsibility but one official said suspicions were focused on Kurdish militants.

Deputy Prime Minister Numan Kurtulmus told the private news channel CNN Turk that "arrows point to the PKK."

He was referring to the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party, which has waged a decades-long insurgency.

Two bombs exploded outside a major soccer stadium in Istanbul after fans had gone home Saturday night, killing 15 people and wounding dozens, a Turkish official said, citing health ministry figures. One of the blasts was thought to be a suicide bomber.

Police cordoned off the area as smoke rose from behind the newly built Vodafone Arena Stadium, known colloquially as Besiktas Stadium after the local team. Witnesses also heard gunfire after the explosions. The second blast was thought to be a car bomb.

"We have once again witnessed tonight in Istanbul the ugly face of terror which tramples on every value and decency," Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said in a statement.

The official who gave the toll of 15 dead and dozens wounded spoke on condition anonymity because he was not authorized to talk publicly on the issue. He cited health ministry figures.

The first and larger explosion took place about 10:30 p.m. after the home team Besiktas beat visitor Bursaspor 2-1 in the Turkish Super League. Erdogan said the timing of the attack aimed to maximize the loss of life and vowed the nation would overcome terrorism.

Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu, who gave an initial wounded toll of 20 police officers, rushed from Ankara to Istanbul.

"It is thought to be a car bomb at a point where our special forces police were located, right after the match at the exit where Bursaspor fans" had earlier left, Soylu was quoted as saying by Turkey's state-run Anadolu Agency.

Speaking later to reporters in Istanbul, he said the first explosion took place on a hill adjacent to and overlooking the stadium. The second explosion struck Macka Park and was believed to be a suicide bomb.

The private NTV channel reported that the target of the first attack was a bus for riot police and said nearly 70 wounded were taken to hospitals.

Television images showed more than a dozen ambulances on a street hugging the stadium and a police helicopter flying overhead with its searchlights on. The window glass of nearby buildings was shattered by the blasts and coated the pavement. Investigators, including Istanbul Police Chief Mustafa Caliskan, were quickly on the scene.

Taxi driver Ismail Coskun said the force of the explosion caused him to hit his head on the taximeter and that his ears were still ringing from the blast and screaming that followed.

"Amid the screams I heard an officer saying 'do not shout! Do not make them (the perpetrators) be satisfied," he told The AP.

The Besiktas sports club "strongly condemned" the attack in a statement posted on its website while Bursaspor reported that none of the wounded were fans and issued a statement wishing "a speedy recovery to our wounded citizens."

Aleksander Ceferin, president of European soccer's governing body UEFA, and European Union Enlargement Commissioner Johannes Hahn, also made statements condemning the attack.

"Violence has no place in a democratic society," Hahn wrote on Twitter.

The U.S. Consulate General in Istanbul, meanwhile, urged its citizens to avoid the area which is also home to a Ritz Carlton hotel.

Turkey's radio and television board issued a temporary coverage ban citing national security concerns. It said "to avoid broadcasts that can result in public fear, panic or chaos, or that will serve the aims of terrorist organizations."

Cinar Kiper in Istanbul and Rob Harris in London contributed reporting.
The death toll from the bombings in Beşiktaş, Istanbul, rises to at least 44, according to Health Minister Recep Akdağ.