'Terrorists' will never achieve aims: Erdogan after Ankara blast

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies
1 Oct 2023 16:41

The Turkish President says Turkey no longer expects anything from the EU.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan attends the presentation ceremony of letters of confidence to newly appointed ambassadors at the Presidential Complex in Ankara, Turkey on September 27, 2023 (AFP)

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Sunday that "terrorists" will never achieve their aims and that Turkey no longer expects anything from the European Union, hours after a blast near the parliament in Ankara injured two police officers.

The powerful explosion outside the Interior Ministry, which was followed by large flames, was heard several kilometers away from the site of the attack.

The targeted district is home to several other ministries and the Turkish parliament, which reopened as planned in the afternoon with an address from Erdogan.

"The villains who threaten the peace and security of citizens have not achieved their objectives and will never achieve them," Erdogan told the parliament.

The Turkish Interior Ministry said two attackers arrived in a commercial vehicle around 9:30 am (0630 GMT) in front of "the entrance gate of the General Directorate of Security of our Ministry of the Interior, and carried out a bomb attack."

"One of the terrorists blew himself up. The other was killed by a bullet to the head before he had a chance to blow himself up," Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya explained in a press statement outside the Ministry.

The #Turkish government announced that a bomb attack was executed by two terrorists in front of the Interior Ministry buildings in #Ankara.#Turkey pic.twitter.com/SjVUIa2f6C
— Al Mayadeen English (@MayadeenEnglish) October 1, 2023

"Two of our police officers were lightly injured" in the exchange of fire, but their lives were not in danger, he added.

The Ankara police headquarters said on social media platform X that it was carrying out "controlled explosions" of "suspicious packages" to prevent other explosions.

The Ankara prosecutor's office said it was opening an investigation and banned access to the area. Local media were asked to stop broadcasting images from the scene of the attack.

No side claimed responsibility for the blast yet.

Later, Erdogan opened the parliamentary session with a strong-worded address, slamming his country's long wait for accession to the European Union, stating that Turkey "no longer expects anything from the European Union, which has kept us waiting at its door for 40 years."

"We have kept all the promises we have made to the EU but they have kept almost none of theirs," the Turkish leader stressed, adding that he would not "tolerate any new demands or conditions" for his country to join the bloc.

This session of Turkey's parliament must also validate Sweden's entry into the US-led NATO alliance.

Hungary and Turkey in July lifted their vetoes against Sweden's entry into the Atlantic alliance but have been slow to ratify its membership.

Erdogan indicated in July that ratification by the Turkish parliament would not take place before October, but it is expected to be approved during this parliamentary year.

The Turkish capital has been the scene of several attacks, particularly during the years 2015 and 2016 -- many claimed by the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) or ISIS.

In October 2015, an attack in front of a central station in Ankara claimed by ISIS resulted in 109 deaths.

The most recent bomb attack in Turkey targeted a shopping street in Istanbul in November 2022, claiming the lives of six people and injuring 81 others.

There was no claim of responsibility, but Turkey accused the PKK of being behind the attack and said it had detained 46 people, including a Syrian woman suspected of planting the device.