2007 Ankara bombing

2007 Ankara suicide bombing
Part of the Kurdish–Turkish conflict (1978–present)
Location Ankara, Turkey
Date May 22, 2007
17:20 – ?  (UTC+2)
Target Shopping Centre
Attack type
 Suicide Bombing
Deaths 9[1][2][3][4]
Non-fatal injuries
 121[1]
Perpetrators Kurdistan Freedom Hawks (TAK)[5]

The 2007 Ankara bombing was a suicide attack that occurred in Ankara, the capital of Turkey, on 22 May 2007. Six people were reported killed, including one of Pakistani origin, and 121 people were wounded.[1][6][7][8] A seventh person died from his injuries on 7 June and another on 17 June raising the death toll to eight.[2][3] A ninth person died on 4 July from his injuries.[4]

The attack

The explosion occurred outside a shopping centre in the Ulus quarter of Ankara. The police reports suggested a "suicide bombing".[9] A type A4 bomb has been reported as being the cause of the explosion and the "Terror and Organised Crime Unit" (Turkish: Terör ve Organize Suçlar) has taken over the investigation.[10] The explosion shattered windows of the shopping centre and of nearby buildings creating havoc.[11] The Ankara bombing came as more than 35 world leaders, including the U.S. President, were in Istanbul for a NATO summit that began on Monday, which left tensions high as numerous other incidents have occurred in the run-up to the meeting.[12] It also heightened political tensions between the secular and non-secular parties of Turkey, as both fight for public support and leadership of the nation.[13] The timing of the bombing raised assassination suspicions since General Yaşar Büyükanıt (Chief of the General Staff), General İlker Başbuğ (Commander of the Army), General Işık Koşaner (Commander of the Gendarmerie), General Faruk Cömert (Commander of the Air Force), and Admiral Yener Karahanoğlu (Commander of the Navy) were to attend the IDEF Defense Fair same day held at the Anatolian Civilizations Museum (Turkish: Anadolu Medeniyetleri Müzesi) crossing the blast zone.[14]

The suicide bomber was later identified as Güven Akkuş. Circumstances regarding the explosion of Akkuş's explosives remains unclear. The police has three competing theories:

  1. While moving towards the target suicide bomber Akkuş panicked when a squad car coincidentally stopped in front of him, leading him to detonate his explosive.
  2. Type A-4 explosives are sensitive to body temperature so it is possible that the explosives self-detonated while Akkuş and a collaborator only identified by her code name "Ayşe" panicked after the encounter with the squad car.
  3. Collaborator "Ayşe" detonated Akkuş's explosives remotely when Akkuş panicked.

Collaborator "Ayşe" is known to have visited a hospital briefly after the bombing and is currently at large.[15]

The attack was claimed by the Kurdistan Freedom Hawks (TAK), which is believed to be a part of Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) and which PKK has denied.[5]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Bombalı saldırıda sürpriz tanık" (in Turkish). Hürriyet. Archived from the original on 4 June 2007. Retrieved 2007-06-02.
  2. 1 2 "Anafartalar saldırısında ölü sayısı 7'ye yükseldi" (in Turkish). Hürriyet. Archived from the original on 9 June 2007. Retrieved 2007-06-08.
  3. 1 2 "8’inci kurban" (in Turkish). Hürriyet. Archived from the original on 21 June 2007. Retrieved 2007-06-19.
  4. 1 2 "Anafartalar'da ölü sayısı 9'a çıktı" (in Turkish). Hürriyet. Archived from the original on 6 July 2007. Retrieved 2007-07-04.
  5. 1 2 http://www.teyrenkurdistan.com/Sehitlerimiz.html
  6. ↑ "Vali açıkladı: Canlı bomba" (in Turkish). Hürriyet. Archived from the original on 25 May 2007. Retrieved 2007-05-23.
  7. ↑ "Ankara'da patlama FLAŞ" (in Turkish). Hürriyet. Archived from the original on 24 May 2007. Retrieved 2007-05-22.
  8. ↑ "Görgü tanığı: 10 ölü var" (in Turkish). Hürriyet. Archived from the original on 24 May 2007. Retrieved 2007-05-22.
  9. ↑ "Explosion rocks Turkish capital". BBC. 2007-05-22. Archived from the original on 7 June 2007. Retrieved 2007-05-22.
  10. ↑ "Bombanın cinsi A4" (in Turkish). Hürriyet. Archived from the original on 24 May 2007. Retrieved 2007-05-22.
  11. ↑ http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/world/4825650.html
  12. ↑ "Explosion in Ankara not a bomb". Television New Zealand. 29 June 2004. Retrieved 14 September 2011.
  13. ↑ Reuters AlertNet - Bomb in Turkish capital kills six, injures 80
  14. ↑ "Korkunç şüphe: Hedef Komutan mıydı?" (in Turkish). Hürriyet. Archived from the original on 24 May 2007. Retrieved 2007-05-23.
  15. ↑ "Polis, Ayşe'nin peşinde!" (in Turkish). Hürriyet. Archived from the original on 3 June 2007. Retrieved 2007-06-02.

Coordinates: 39°56′29.50″N 32°51′22.00″E / 39.9415278°N 32.8561111°E / 39.9415278; 32.8561111

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