By Glynn Cosker
Managing Editor, In Homeland Security
At least 28 people, mostly university-aged students, were killed in an apparent suicide bombing at a rally in the Turkish border town of Suruc. According to reports, at least 100 more were injured.
The death toll is expected to rise as many of the wounded sustained life-threatening injuries. It was the deadliest terror attack in Turkey since 50 people were killed in the border town Reyhanli in 2013.
The explosion happened at around noon at the Amara Cultural Park in Suruc, a town only a few miles from the Syrian Kurdish city of Kobani. The group had gathered to announce their plans to help rebuild Kobani, which was devastated after fighting between Syrian rebels, Kurdish forces and ISIS.
According to CNN, video footage showed the blast initiating behind a large group of students hoisting a pro-Kobani banner.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack that left bodies strewn over a wide area, but early indications reported by the Hurriyet Daily point to an 18-year-old woman as the suicide attacker.
“Our initial evidence shows that this was a suicide attack by Islamic State,” stated a high-ranking official in Ankara to Reuters. A second official echoed that sentiment, also telling Reuters that the bombing Monday was carried out by the Islamic State in “retaliation for the Turkish government’s efforts to fight terrorism.”
President Erdogan condemns #Suruc explosion in southeast http://t.co/NEfe5OPb8Z pic.twitter.com/QEKp81rceH
— Turkey PM Press&Info (@ByegmENG) July 20, 2015
Turkey’s leaders state that they have no imminent plans to take military action against hostile actors in Syria, although the Turkish government is adamant that they’ll do whatever it takes to defend their nation from attacks like the one in Suruc.
“I condemn those who conducted this brutality,” Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said. “Terror has no religion, no country, no race.” British ambassador to Turkey, Richard Moore, tweeted: “UK stands shoulder to shoulder with Turkey in condemning unequivocally all terrorism. I have kids that age.”
PM: Together we’ll defeat extremists and build a stronger, more cohesive country for our children, grandchildren and generations to come.
— UK Prime Minister (@Number10gov) July 20, 2015
The Turkish government is weary that atrocities and unrest in the Turkish-Syria border region might rekindle an armed Kurdish separatist rebellion by the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) that has killed more than 40,000 people over the past 30 years.
Kurds in Turkey have shown anger toward Ankara for the government’s failure to counter the Islamic State’s recent attacks. According to Reuters, the PKK pointed to the leaders of Turkey as the responsible party for Monday’s suicide attack, saying that the Turkish government had “supported and cultivated” Islamic State against the Kurds.
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