SURUC — Turkish authorities have identified a suspect over the suicide bombing close to Turkey's border with Syria that left 32 activists dead, Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said on Tuesday.



"One suspect has been identified. All the (suspect's) links internationally and domestically are being investigated," he said in televised comments.



He added there was a "high probability" the attack was caused by a suicide bomber with connections to Daesh (the so-called IS) militants.



"We expect this investigation to be concluded as soon as possible," Davutoglu added.



Davutoglu said that the death toll had risen to 32 from 31 and added that 29 victims were still hospitalized.



"What's necessary will be done against whomever responsible for (the attack)," said Davutoglu. "Nobody should ever doubt this."



"This is an attack that targeted Turkey," he added.



"Security on our borders will continue to be increased," Davutoglu said late Monday.



"This attack targets us all," he said, urging all political parties to demonstrate unity and vowing to bring the perpetrators to justice.



The blast ripped through a cultural center in Suruc hosting about 300 socialist youth activists and most of the dead and about 100 wounded were university students.



Davutoglu said a cabinet meeting scheduled for Wednesday would look at additional security measures for Turkey's border with Syria.



"We will also discuss an action plan about additional security measures to be taken on our border at the cabinet meeting and will take necessary measures."



He vehemently denied suggestions from some commentators that Turkey and the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) had encouraged Daesh militants in the past. "Turkey and AK Party governments have never had any direct or indirect connection with any terrorist organization and never tolerated any terrorist group," he said.



Turkey has long been accused by its Western partners of not doing enough to halt the rise of Daesh and even colluding with the group, allegations it vehemently denies.



But Ankara has in the last weeks appeared to take a harder line against the group, rounding up dozens of suspected members in Istanbul and other cities.



"Turkey has always taken measures against Daesh and similar kind of organisations," said Davutoglu.



"Daesh threatens not only Syrian people but also Turkey," he added. NATO member Turkey's main aim in the Syria conflict has been the ousting of President Bashar Al-Assad and containment of pro-Kurdish groups and, so far, is yet to play a full role in the coalition against Daesh.



Nihat Ali Ozcan, security expert at Ankara-based TEPAV think tank, told AFP that the attack showed the confrontation between Daesh and Kurdish groups within Syria was "spilling over to Turkish soil."



"The attack could trigger ideological, ethnic and political faultlines in Turkey," he told AFP.



In televised comments, Deputy Prime Minister Nurman Kurtulmus said five corpses of the victims had already been handed over the their families. "We must show a common stand against terror," Kurtulmus said.



President Recep Tayyip Erdogan condemned the attack, saying Monday: "I curse and condemn the perpetrators of this brutality."



The activists from the Federation of Socialist Youth Associations (SGDF), several of whom were in their teens, had travelled to Suruc from all over Turkey, according to Alp Altinors from the pro-Kurdish HDP party.



Just before the attack, they had been pictured seated at tables enjoying breakfast and tea.



White House spokesman Josh Earnest condemned the "heinous" attack, as did Russian President Vladimir Putin, who labelled it a "barbaric act" and called for greater international cooperation in fighting terrorism. — Agencies