48 wounded in eastern Turkey car bombing

Istanbul, Sep 12 (AFP) A car bomb exploded today outsidethe ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) headquarters inthe eastern Turkish city of Van, wounding 48 people includingtwo police officers, the local governor’s office said. Turkish officials have blamed the attack on the outlawedKurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), which is listed as a terrorgroup by Turkey and much of the international community. The attack took place near a police checkpoint outsidethe AKP offices in the heart of the bustling city, the localgovernor’s office said in a statement. "Forty-six civilians and two police officers were injuredafter a bomb-laden car… was blown up by members of theseparatist terror organisation," it added, using a term todescribe Kurdish militants. Nobody has yet claimed responsibility for the bombing,which comes on the first day of the Muslim holiday of EidAl-Adha. But Besir Atalay, an AKP lawmaker from Van, also pointedthe finger of blame at the PKK, which is waging a bloodycampaign against the Turkish state. "The terrorist organisation has targeted our partybuilding and the AKP’s presence in the past. This is one oftheir attacks," he added, in live comments on the private NTVtelevision. Witnesses said the force of the blast shattered thewindows in the surrounding vicinity and the AKP’s provincialoffices sustained severe damage. Several ambulances rushed to the scene and televisionimages showed water cannon being used to put out a fire causedby the explosion. Van, a city with a mixed Kurdish and Turkish populationon the shores of the lake of the same name, has generally beenspared the worst of attacks like those seen in the nearby cityof Diyarbakir. The city is a popular tourist destination, particularlywith Iranians who arrive from across the border in hugenumbers to enjoy shopping and the relaxed atmosphere. The blast came a day after the government announced theremoval of 28 mayors, mainly over alleged links to the PKK ina move strongly denounced by pro-Kurdish parties. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan defended the suspension of28 mayors, saying it was a long-overdue. "You, as mayors and municipal councils, cannot stand upand support terrorist organisations," he told reporters afterprayers outside an Istanbul mosque, shortly before the attack. "You do not have such authority." The government has stepped up its military campaign inthe restive southeast to eradicate PKK militants, who havelaunched almost daily attacks since the rupture of a fragileceasefire last year. Tens of thousands of people have been killed since thePKK first took up arms in 1984, with the aim of carving out anindependent state for Turkey’s Kurdish minority. Turkey has also launched an operation inside Syria toremove Islamic State (IS) group militants as well as SyrianKurdish militia from its frontier. (AFP)AJR