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Bomber attacks US embassy in Ankara, Turkey Bomber attacks US embassy in Ankara, Turkey
(about 1 hour later)
A suicide attack outside the US embassy in the Turkish capital, Ankara, has killed the bomber and a security guard, Turkish officials say. A suicide bomber has attacked the US embassy in the Turkish capital Ankara, killing a guard, officials say.
The US ambassador confirmed that a member of the embassy's Turkish staff had been killed. The blast, at a side entrance of the heavily guarded compound, sent debris flying into the street.
Video shows damage to a checkpoint although reports say there was no damage inside the embassy. The US has warned its citizens not to visit diplomatic missions in Turkey until further notice.
One other person was wounded by the blast, in an area also home to other diplomatic missions. No group has said it carried out the attack, but Interior Minister Muammer Guler said the bomber, who also died, was a far-left militant.
Embassy staff were taken to secure rooms in the building, a reporter told Turkish channel NTV. Mr Guler suggested that the bomber might have been a member of the outlawed Revolutionary People's Liberation Party-Front.
He also said the attacker was believed to have been a Turkish national.
The police moved quickly to create a barricade a few metres from the site of the blast. They have cordoned off the area with bright yellow tape, and crowds of officers are still at the scene. Throngs of reporters and camera crews have been pushed back down the street by the police officers.The police moved quickly to create a barricade a few metres from the site of the blast. They have cordoned off the area with bright yellow tape, and crowds of officers are still at the scene. Throngs of reporters and camera crews have been pushed back down the street by the police officers.
The embassy is in a district that is home to several diplomatic missions, as well as affluent residential areas, shops and restaurants. Worried residents have been passing by, trying to find out what has happened. The owner of a travel agent across the road from the embassy said he had seen the body of the attacker being lifted into the back of an ambulance.The embassy is in a district that is home to several diplomatic missions, as well as affluent residential areas, shops and restaurants. Worried residents have been passing by, trying to find out what has happened. The owner of a travel agent across the road from the embassy said he had seen the body of the attacker being lifted into the back of an ambulance.
It is still unclear who carried out the attack, but the Turkish capital has been hit by suicide bombings in the past. The last attack was in September 2011, and was blamed on Kurdish militants.It is still unclear who carried out the attack, but the Turkish capital has been hit by suicide bombings in the past. The last attack was in September 2011, and was blamed on Kurdish militants.
No group has so far said it carried out the attack. Turkey and the US have denounced the incident as terrorism.
A number of illegal groups ranging from Kurdish separatists to leftist and Islamist militants have launched attacks in recent years in Turkey, which is a member of Nato. Ankara was last hit by a suicide bombing in September 2011, in an attack blamed on Kurdish militants.
The last big attack in Ankara in 2007, which killed nine and injured 120, was blamed by police investigators on a lone, leftist suicide bomber. A number of illegal groups ranging from Kurdish separatists to leftist and Islamist militants have launched attacks in Turkey in recent years.
'Suicide bomber' 'Terrorist elements'
The Turkish provincial governor, Alaattin Yuksel, told reporters: "There were two dead in the suicide bombing, a Turkish security guard and the bomber himself." US ambassador Francis Ricciardone briefed reporters outside the embassy shortly after the attack.
US Ambassador Francis Ricciardione told reporters a guard at the embassy's gate had been killed in the blast at 13:15 (11:15 GMT, and a Turkish citizen had been wounded. He said a guard at the embassy's side entrance had been killed in the blast at 13:15 (11:15 GMT), and a Turkish citizen had been wounded.
An AP journalist saw a woman who appeared to be seriously injured being carried into an ambulance. Turkish officials said the bomber had also died.
A witness, who works in an Iran Air travel agency opposite the embassy. said he had seen a body being removed by ambulance. The agency's windows were blown out by the blast. Other reports said three people were injured, one of them seriously.
The area around the embassy was swarming with police, former BBC journalist Golnar Motevalli said. Witnesses said a woman with her face covered in blood had been taken away in an ambulance.
While the blast was very loud, she added, the damage seemed to have been limited to the vicinity of the blast and no smoke was visible afterwards. The explosion blew the door off the entrance checkpoint and sent debris flying into the street.
The US embassy building is heavily protected but has had long-standing plans to move its compound elsewhere for security reasons. Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan made a televised statement in which he called for a global effort to combat "terrorist elements".
It was recently reported to be in the final stages of finalising a deal to choose an alternative venue. The US state department said it was working with the Turkish police to make a full assessment of the damage.
The German and French embassies are situated close by. The owner of a travel agency opposite the embassy said he had seen a body being removed by ambulance. His agency's windows were blown out by the blast.
The area around the embassy was swarming with police, said journalist Golnar Motevalli in Ankara.
While the blast was very loud, she added, the damage seemed to have been limited to the vicinity and no smoke was visible afterwards.
The embassy building is heavily protected but the US has had long-standing plans to move its compound elsewhere for security reasons.
It was recently reported to be in the final stages of a deal to choose an alternative location.
The German and French embassies are situated close to the current building.
Are you in Ankara? Are you near to the area of the blast? Please use the form below to get in touch.Are you in Ankara? Are you near to the area of the blast? Please use the form below to get in touch.
Send your pictures and videos to yourpics@bbc.co.uk or text them to 61124 (UK) or +44 7624 800 100 (International). If you have a large file you can upload here.Send your pictures and videos to yourpics@bbc.co.uk or text them to 61124 (UK) or +44 7624 800 100 (International). If you have a large file you can upload here.
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