ISTANBUL: An explosion hit a bus station in central Istanbul on Thursday leaving many people injured, state news agency Anatolian reported.   

The agency said the explosion was heard outside a major bus departure point in the Eminonu area of central Istanbul.   

The cause of the blast was being investigated, the agency said.   

Police said they could not confirm the report. Blasts in Istanbul are frequent and bomb attacks have been claimed by Kurdish separatist guerrillas, extreme leftists and Islamic radicals.