A terrorist attack at Turkish Aerospace Industries (TUSAS) near Ankara, Turkey left 5 people dead and over 22 injured. Camera footage shows two attackers with assault rifles and backpacks entering the TUSAS building.
Among the victims were four TUSAS employees, seven special forces members, and a taxi driver, who the attackers killed before using his vehicle for the attack.
Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya said the attackers, a man and a woman, were “likely” part of the outlawed terrorist organization Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), though no group has taken responsibility yet. Both were killed after the attack and authorities are working to identify them.
“I condemn this heinous attack. Our struggle will continue with determination and resolve until the last terrorist is neutralized,” said Yerlikaya according to ABC News.
Turkish president Tayyip Erdogan, attending the BRICS conference with Vladmir Putin in Russia also condemned the attack and said security forces quickly neutralized the threat.
In retaliation, Turkish airstrikes were conducted in northern Syria and Iraq where 32 PKK targets were killed. The PKK has been fighting against the Turkish government since the 1980s for greater rights for the Kurdish minority.
In a statement the day before the attack on Tuesday, Devlet Bahceli, leader of the far-right Nationalist Movement Party and ally of President Erdogan said that imprisoned PKK leader Abdullah Öcalan may be paroled if he disbands the organization and renounces the rebellion.
Authorities in Turkey have also imposed a media blackout and have warned people not to share images relating to the incident to not “serve the purpose of terrorism”, according to BBC News.