Ankara suicide bombings

This item appears on page 15 of the December 2015 issue.

In Ankara, Turkey, two suicide bombers targeted a peace rally on Oct. 10, killing at least 97 people and injuring more than 200. The rally, organized by leftist Turkish groups, was staged to call for an end to violence between the Turkish government and the pro-independence Kurdish Workers Party (PKK). 

A cease-fire agreement between the government and the PKK broke down in July after the PKK blamed the government for inaction that allowed a suicide bombing to occur in which 30 Kurdish civilians were killed in the southeastern town of Suruç. The suicide bomber in Suruç was identified as a member of the self-proclaimed Islamic State (IS, or ISIL).

The Turkish government blamed IS for the Ankara bombings, identifying two suspects, including the brother of one of the suspects in the Suruç bombing.