Late on Sunday, Turkish fighter aircraft conducted air strikes within the borders of Iraqi Kurdistan, subsequent to an earlier explosion that resulted in the injury of two police officers near the entrance of the Ministry of Interior Affairs in Ankara.
In the aftermath of the bombing, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan promptly declared that the objectives of the “terrorists” would never be accomplished. The Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), recognized as a terrorist organization by Turkey and its Western allies, claimed responsibility for the explosion.
For the past forty years, the PKK has engaged in a lethal insurgency against the Turkish government. The specific area targeted in the bombing encompasses various ministries and the Turkish parliament, which resumed its activities as scheduled in the afternoon, with a speech delivered by President Erdogan.
“The villains who threaten the peace and security of citizens have not achieved their objectives and will never achieve them,” stated Erdogan.
The Ministry of Interior confirmed that two assailants arrived in a commercial vehicle at approximately 9:30 am (0630 GMT) and executed a bomb attack at the entrance gate of the General Directorate of Security of the Ministry of Interior.
Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya informed journalists that one of the terrorists detonated himself, while the other was shot in the head before he could carry out his plan. Two police officers sustained minor injuries during the exchange of gunfire, but their lives were not in danger.
The Ankara prosecutor’s office has initiated an investigation and restricted access to the area. Local media outlets have been requested to refrain from broadcasting images from the site of the attack.
In a statement to the ANF news agency, which is affiliated with the Kurdish movement, the PKK claimed responsibility for the “sacrificial action” against the Turkish Interior Ministry.
On Sunday evening, an official in Iraqi Kurdistan reported that Turkish army planes bombed parts of the Bradost region and the village of Badran. Turkey’s defence ministry acknowledged an “air operation” in northern Iraq to “neutralize the PKK.” The ministry stated that “20 targets used by terrorists” were destroyed.
