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A suicide bombing outside the U.S. Embassy in Ankara, Turkey, killed a Turkish security guard and injured two other people, authorities said Friday.

"We can confirm a terrorist blast at a checkpoint on the perimeter of our embassy compound in Ankara, Turkey, at 1:13 p.m. local time," U.S. State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said. "We are working closely with the Turkish national police to make a full assessment of the damage and the casualties ... ."

Officials said the guard and suicide bomber were killed. It had been reported earlier that two security guards died in the attack.

The explosion destroyed a door at the entrance and scattered masonry from the wall around it but embassy workers said there was no damage inside the building, the Hurriyet Daily News reported.

All embassy personnel had been taken to safe rooms within the building, the newspaper reported.

The attack on the consulate in Ankara came just over 4 1/2 months after heavily armed militants stormed the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi, Libya. Four Americans died in that Sept. 11 attack, including U.S. Ambassador Chris Stevens.