The attack occurred as parliament returned from recess and prepared to debate Sweden’s NATO bid.
In Ankara, Turkey, police officers can be seen in the area of the police headquarters after a suicide bomber detonated himself. (Source: Rueters)
PKK Against Turkish Government
Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya said a suicide bomber wounded two police officers in Ankara Sunday outside Turkey’s police headquarters. Turkish authorities say a second terrorist was neutralized in an attack. The banned Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), which has been fighting the Turkish government since 1984, claimed credit for the explosion hours later.
The militant group said the attack’s location and timing are meant to send a “warning” signal to the Turkish government about its military operations against it in Syria and Iraq, according to Firat news agency. Turkey, the US, and the EU consider the PKK a terrorist group. The attack occurred hours before the Turkish parliament was scheduled to return from summer break. The parliament is roughly 300 meters (0.2 miles) from the police headquarters where the attack occurred.
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan addressed parliament as planned later on Sunday. Erdogan told legislators the incident was terrorism’s final battle. “We will fight inside and outside until the last terrorist is eliminated,” he vowed. Erdogan promised in July to present the admission protocol to parliament after the recess, so lawmakers are expected to discuss Sweden’s NATO membership soon. NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg denounced the incident. “NATO stands in solidarity with [Turkey] in the fight against terrorism,” he stated on Twitter.
READ ALSO: B-12 Stealth Bomber: Air Force Reveals Teasing Photos of the New Aircraft
Turkish Government Urges to Delete Videos During the Attack
To prevent explosions, Ankara police used “monitored detonations” of “suspicious packages”. This was the first Turkish capital bomb since 2016. Yerlikaya promised “our struggle until the last terrorist is neutralized.” Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan suggested the attack was planned abroad. Fidan said on X, “Our struggle against terror will continue inside and outside the homeland.” Justice Minister Yilmaz Tunc said the incident prompted a large-scale inquiry. Authorities also banned attack videos from broadcasting.
In broadcast remarks later Sunday, Yerlikaya urged social media users who shared attack footage to erase it. Social media videos showed the attackers driving a commercial vehicle to the police headquarters. Erdogan’s chief foreign policy adviser, Akif Cagatay Kilic, denounced the incident. “I hope our brave police officers recover quickly. Attacks by terrorists will fail. Our resolve to battle all types of terrorism will remain, he declared. Government authorities and opposition leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu condemned the incident. The US Embassy in Ankara advised American nationals to avoid the attack site after a security alert.
“We strongly condemn the terrorist attack this morning against NATO ally Turkey. The injured deserve our sympathy and rapid recovery. We support Turkey against terrorism, the embassy added.
READ ALSO: Pinkett Smith, Posted on Social Media About the Murder of Tupac Shakur
