Turkish FM adds voice to outrage over Ankara blast

ANKARA

Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu joined the ranks of Turkish politicians condemning Sunday’s car bomb attack in capital Ankara on Monday.

“I strongly condemned the cowardly terror attack that targeted our innocent civilians,” Cavusoglu said in a tweet. “Our fight against all kinds of terrorism will continue until they end.”

Earlier, Justice Minister Bekir Bozdag issued a statement in which he said Turkey would maintain the struggle against terrorism. “We, as the nation, must protect our unity, harmony, brotherhood and peace with greater solidarity against terrorist attacks,” he said.

The attack in Kizilay Square, a central public transport hub, killed 37 people and left 71 in hospital as of Monday morning. One or two attackers are among the dead, Health Minister Mehmet Muezzinoglu said. A car bomb detonated at around 6.45 p.m. local time (1645 GMT) near a row of bus stops outside an entrance to the metro station.

The Turkish General Staff reiterated the military’s determination to defeat terrorism in a statement condemning the “cowardly and brutal” attack.

Following the blast, Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said investigators had evidence about who was behind the attack, which would be made public at the end of the investigation.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan pledged to “successfully conclude by bringing down terror to its heel”. Opposition leaders from the Republican People's Party (CHP), Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) and Peoples’ Democratic Party’s (HDP) also condemned the attack.

ANKARA

Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu joined the ranks of Turkish politicians condemning Sunday’s car bomb attack in capital Ankara on Monday.

“I strongly condemned the cowardly terror attack that targeted our innocent civilians,” Cavusoglu said in a tweet. “Our fight against all kinds of terrorism will continue until they end.”

The Turkish General Staff reiterated the military’s determination to defeat terrorism in a statement condemning the “cowardly and brutal” attack.

Following the blast, Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said investigators had evidence about who was behind the attack, which would be made public at the end of the investigation.