Gunfire was also heard in the parliamentary district, which houses several ministries, according to Turkish media. A large number of police vehicles and ambulances were deployed in the area.
The interior ministry said the explosion in the center of the capital Ankara was a “terrorist attack”. “Two terrorists in a light military vehicle appeared in front of the entrance gate of the General Directorate of Defense of our Ministry of Interior at around 9:30 am (6:30 am GMT) and carried out a bomb attack,” the ministry pointed out. .
Two police officers were slightly injured in the attack by “two terrorists”, one of whom “detonated himself” and the other was “neutralised”, the interior ministry said. “One of the terrorists blew himself up and the other remained neutral. Two of our police officers sustained minor injuries,” said Mr. Yerlikaya X (formerly on Twitter) said.
The targeted district is home to several ministries and parliament, which is due to open its new session later in the day and where President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is due to speak, according to Turkish media.
Private television channel NTV reported that the shooting took place in a completely cordoned-off neighborhood, where scores of police vehicles and ambulances were stationed.
The Ankara Public Prosecutor’s Office announced that it was launching an investigation and banned access to the area where the attack took place.
Sweden in NATO
A number of ministries in the target district and Parliament is scheduled to hold its inaugural session from 2:00 pm (11:00 GMT) on Sunday. During this parliamentary year, the parliament must verify Sweden’s entry into the Atlantic Alliance.
Since May 2022, Turkey has kept the Scandinavian country pleading for mercy on “terrorists” and Kurdish movements.
President Erdoğan maintains an ambiguous position by arguing that the parliament is sovereign and that only it can decide whether or not to lift this veto.
Ankara was the scene of numerous and violent attacks in 2015-2016 by Kurdish separatists from the PKK, the Kurdistan Workers’ Party, or the Islamic State group.
During the most recent one, in March 2016, a car bomb exploded in the central district of Kilise, killing 38 people and injuring 125 others. DAK, a small militant group close to the PKK, was blamed for the attack.
In October 2015, an ISIS attack in front of Ankara Central Station killed 109 people.
The last recorded attack on Turkish territory, on November 13, 2022, in a shopping street in Istanbul (six dead, 81 injured) was not claimed but was attributed by authorities to the PKK.
“Total coffee junkie. Tv ninja. Unapologetic problem solver. Beer expert.”