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| Turkey terror attack: many killed in Ankara blasts | Turkey terror attack: many killed in Ankara blasts |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| At least 30 people have been killed and more than 100 wounded in a terrorist attack on a peace rally in the centre of the Turkish capital, according to reports. | At least 30 people have been killed and more than 100 wounded in a terrorist attack on a peace rally in the centre of the Turkish capital, according to reports. |
| Twin explosions outside Ankara’s main train station on Saturday morning appear to have targeted hundreds of people who had gathered to protest violence between authorities and Kurdish separatist group, the PKK. | Twin explosions outside Ankara’s main train station on Saturday morning appear to have targeted hundreds of people who had gathered to protest violence between authorities and Kurdish separatist group, the PKK. |
| Turkish government officials said the explosion was a terrorist attack and are investigating the claim that a suicide bomber was responsible. Turkey’s prime minister, Ahmet Davutoğlu, is to hold a meeting with government officials and security chiefs in response to the attack, his office said. | |
| The country’s interior ministry confirmed 30 people were killed in the blasts and 126 were wounded. A Reuters reporter at the scene saw at least 20 bodies covered by flags, with bloodstains and body parts scattered on the road. | The country’s interior ministry confirmed 30 people were killed in the blasts and 126 were wounded. A Reuters reporter at the scene saw at least 20 bodies covered by flags, with bloodstains and body parts scattered on the road. |
| Witnesses said the blasts were seconds apart shortly after 10am and were so powerful they rocked nearby high-rise buildings. | Witnesses said the blasts were seconds apart shortly after 10am and were so powerful they rocked nearby high-rise buildings. |
| Some people added ambulances could not immediately reach the scene of the attack, and that police obstructed the quick evacuation of the wounded from the square. A Turkish MP, Sirri Süreyya Önder, also claimed suspicious vehicle and another suspicious package had been found and that bomb disposal experts had been called to the scene. | |
| bodies covered with HDP flags in Ankara explosion pic.twitter.com/Sy8zI3vGiD | bodies covered with HDP flags in Ankara explosion pic.twitter.com/Sy8zI3vGiD |
| Those involved in the peace march tended to the wounded lying on the ground, as hundreds of stunned people wandered around the streets. Bodies lay in two circles around 20 metres apart where the explosions had taken place. | Those involved in the peace march tended to the wounded lying on the ground, as hundreds of stunned people wandered around the streets. Bodies lay in two circles around 20 metres apart where the explosions had taken place. |
| Selahattin Demirtas, co-chair of the HDP party, said : “We are witnessing a massacre here. A cruel and barbarian attack was carried out. The death toll is high.” | |
| No group has yet claimed responsibility for the blast, which occurred ahead of the planned peace march to the long-running conflict between the state and Kurdish militants in south-east Turkey. | No group has yet claimed responsibility for the blast, which occurred ahead of the planned peace march to the long-running conflict between the state and Kurdish militants in south-east Turkey. |
| The explosion came three weeks ahead of a parliamentary election and amid growing security concerns in the region. A rally for the pro-Kurdish HDP party was bombed in June, ahead of last year’s general election. | The explosion came three weeks ahead of a parliamentary election and amid growing security concerns in the region. A rally for the pro-Kurdish HDP party was bombed in June, ahead of last year’s general election. |
| The country has been in a heightened state of alert since starting a “synchronised war on terror” in July, including airstrikes against Islamic State fighters in Syria and PKK bases in northern Iraq. It has also rounded up hundreds of suspected militants at home. | The country has been in a heightened state of alert since starting a “synchronised war on terror” in July, including airstrikes against Islamic State fighters in Syria and PKK bases in northern Iraq. It has also rounded up hundreds of suspected militants at home. |
| Designated a terrorist group by Turkey, the United States and the European Union, the PKK launched a separatist insurgency in 1984 in which more than 40,000 people have been killed. | Designated a terrorist group by Turkey, the United States and the European Union, the PKK launched a separatist insurgency in 1984 in which more than 40,000 people have been killed. |
| The state launched peace talks with the PKK’s jailed leader in 2012 and the latest in a series of ceasefires had been holding until the violence flared again in July. | The state launched peace talks with the PKK’s jailed leader in 2012 and the latest in a series of ceasefires had been holding until the violence flared again in July. |