| 2008 Diyarbakır bombing | |
|---|---|
 Diyarbakır Province highlighted within Turkey | |
 Interactive map of 2008 Diyarbakır bombing | |
| Location | Diyarbakır,Turkey |
| Date | 3 January 2008 16:50 – (UTC+2) |
Attack type | Car bombing |
| Deaths | 5 |
| Injured | 110 |
On 3 January 2008, at an estimated local time of 16:50 (14:50 UTC), acar bomb exploded in the city ofDiyarbakır in south-easternTurkey.[1][2]
First reports from the area indicated that the bomb, which exploded in the Dagkapi neighborhood of Diyarbakır on Thursday evening, targeted a military service vehicle that was carrying 46army personnel as it passed near a school. The district is known to have a heavyTurkish military presence because due a military helicopter base, hospitals and military housings in the area. The explosion could be heard 3 km (two miles) away.[2][3]
The attack occurred duringrush hour.[citation needed]
According to Bianet 7 people died in the attack, five were children who attended the school beside the site of the bombing.[4] About 110 other people were wounded, eight people seriously.[3]
Nobody has claimed responsibility for the blast, but authorities have blamed militants of the outlawedKurdistan Workers Party (PKK), whom Turkish security forces are fighting both in Turkey and in nearby northernIraq. The stateAnatolian news agency quoted prosecutors as saying that four people had been detained in connection with the blast. Earlier, security sources said 12 people had been detained.[3] During a manifestation,Sezgin Tanrikulu, the president of theDiyarbakır Bar Association read out a message on behalf of several worker unions, criticizing the violence.[4]
Turkey: "This (bombing) is an attack against our people, especially our people in the southeast, in Diyarbakır. Theterrorist organisation has never been the representative ofourKurdish citizens,"Prime MinisterTayyip Erdogan said inAnkara. Erdogan also told reporters he would visit Diyarbakır two days after the bombing. GeneralYasar Buyukanit, head of Turkey's military General Staff, was due to visit the city on the day after the bombing.[3]
United States: This incident has once more showed the necessity of cooperation in fight against terrorism,Chase Beamer, spokesman for the Department's Bureau of European & Eurasian Affairs, told A.A correspondent. Beamer also saidWashington is besideAnkara in itsfight against terror.[5]
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)37°54′52″N40°13′50″E / 37.91441°N 40.230629°E /37.91441; 40.230629
