Ankara blast: Turkey vows retaliation for deadly bomb attack

BBC.COM | Thursday February 18, 2016 08:54

President Erdogan cancelled his planned visit to Azerbaijan after the Ankara attack

'Turkey will not shy away from using its right to self-defence at any time, any place or any occasion,' President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said.

Officials said a vehicle full of explosives was detonated as military buses were passing by on Wednesday.

Funerals are expected to take place later on Thursday.

No group has so far claimed responsibility for the attack.

The US condemned the blast, with National Security Council spokesman Ned Price saying: 'We stand together with Turkey, a Nato ally, a strong partner.'

The blast happened in an area close to parliament and military headquarters.

Large plumes of smoke were seen rising from the area and witnesses said the blast was heard all over the city.

Some of the victims were civilians.

In a separate development later on Wednesday, an explosion damaged a building housing a Turkish cultural centre near the Swedish capital Stockholm, officials said. No-one was injured.

It was not clear if the incident was linked to the Ankara blast.

'Turkey will not shy away from using its right to self-defence at any time, any place or any occasion,' President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said.Officials said a vehicle full of explosives was detonated as military buses were passing by on Wednesday.Funerals are expected to take place later on Thursday.No group has so far claimed responsibility for the attack.

The US condemned the blast, with National Security Council spokesman Ned Price saying: 'We stand together with Turkey, a Nato ally, a strong partner.'The blast happened in an area close to parliament and military headquarters.Large plumes of smoke were seen rising from the area and witnesses said the blast was heard all over the city.Some of the victims were civilians.

In a separate development later on Wednesday, an explosion damaged a building housing a Turkish cultural centre near the Swedish capital Stockholm, officials said. No-one was injured.It was not clear if the incident was linked to the Ankara blast.

In a statement released several hours after the Ankara attack, President Erdogan said: 'Our determination to retaliate to these attacks, in Turkey and abroad, which aim at our unity, togetherness and future, is increasing with such actions.'

Mr Erdogan cancelled a planned trip to Azerbaijan on Thursday, while Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu also said he would not go to Brussels where he was due to attend meetings about the refugee crisis in Europe.

Meanwhile, Deputy Prime Minister Bekir Bozdag described the attack - which happened at about 16:30 GMT - as an 'act of terrorism'.

Security forces carried out a controlled explosion on a suspect package after the blast.

Turkey has been hit by a series of attacks in recent months, and there have been increasing concerns that the country could be targeted by another big attack.

It is not clear who was behind the blast in Ankara. Security sources blamed both so-called Islamic State (IS) and militants from the banned Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), Reuters reported.

A government spokesman said the attack had been well planned.