Turkey's Defense Ministry says a car bomb exploded in a northern Syrian town along the border with Turkey, killing three civilians.

The ministry said on Saturday that more than 20 people were injured in the explosion in an industrial zone of Tal Abyad. The ministry blamed Syrian Kurdish fighters for the attack.

Two other car bombs have hit Tal Abyad this month, killing at least 21 people.

Turkey-backed fighters captured the city from Kurdish-led fighters in October.

Turkey is seeking to expand its areas of influence in Syria's north, pushing Kurdish fighters away from its borders. Ankara views those Kurdish fighters as terrorists.

The same Kurdish fighters were the United States' main partner in combating the militant Islamic State group in Syria.