ANKARA BLAST KILLS 6, INJURES 100
PanARMENIAN.Net
23.05.2007 13:22 GMT+04:00
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ The number of injured in a bomb blast at a
shopping mall in Turkey’s capital Ankara on Tuesday has risen to 100,
authorities said on Wednesday, while police searched for clues as to
who was behind the attack.
"We have seen a vicious, ruthless terror attack at Ankara’s busiest
time," said Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who was visiting
the scene.
The blast occurred during evening rush hour at the entrance to a
shopping center in the district of Ulus.
A Pakistan national was among the dead. The area has been cordoned
off and an investigation has begun.
Unconfirmed reports suggest an explosive device may have been left
at a nearby bus stop.
Much of the front of one building was ripped off by the blast at the
Anafartalar shopping center. TV footage showed several people lying
seriously injured on the pavement surrounded by piles of concrete and
glass. Other people, possibly passers-by, were hurt by flying glass.
Turkey has been hit by bombings in recent years. Some have been blamed
on Kurds and others on Islamic militants.
In November 2003, more than 60 people were killed by a series of
suicide bombings in Istanbul which the authorities linked to al-Qaeda.
Kurdish rebels carried out a spate of attacks on tourist sites in
Turkey last year, killing more than a dozen people, BBC reports.