Islamic State Blamed For Deadly Turkey Blasts
Thousands take to the streets to denounce the attacks which a political party involved in the protests says killed 128 people.
18:27 Sunday 11 October 2015
Islamic State is responsible for two blasts that killed at least 95 people in the Turkish capital Ankara, according to sources.
Reuters says it has been told that initial signs indicate the militant group carried out the attack, which a pro-Kurdish political party says left 128 dead.
The HDP (People's Democratic Party), which was among the groups attending the rally, said that 120 of those who died had been identified and eight more bodies remained unidentified.
The government says 95 people died and 245 others were wounded by the twin explosions which occurred seconds apart on Saturday morning.
A senior security source that Reuters spoke to said the attack bore a striking resemblance to a suicide bombing in July in the town of Suruc near the Syrian border, also blamed on Islamic State.
The source said: "This attack was in the style of Suruc and all the signs are that it was a copy of that attack ... the signs point to ISIL (Islamic State)."
Protests have been held across the country to denounce the bombings which came at the beginning of a march calling on the government to stop strikes on Kurdish rebels.
There has been no claim of responsibility for the attack - the worst in Turkey's history - but earlier Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said Kurdish rebels, Islamic State militants or leftist groups were most likely to blame.
He also said there was evidence that suicide bombers carried out the blasts.
Co-leader of the HDP, Selahattin Demirtas, accused the Turkish state of bearing responsibility for the attack.
One of the Turkish newspapers claimed that investigators had determined that one of the bombers was a male aged about 25 or 30.
Turkish news agency Dogan reported that police detained 14 suspected members of Islamic State in the central Turkish city of Konya. But is not known whether this was in response to the bombing.
Scuffles broke out on Sunday morning as police used tear gas on pro-Kurdish mourners who attempted to pay their respects to the victims.
Thousands marched towards the centre of Ankara, chanting slogans against President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who many accuse of increasing tensions with Kurds to profit at the ballot box in November.
Later, the funeral of the first of the victims, 25-year-old Korkmaz Tedik, was held with dozens of those attending raising their fists in the air as they continued their protests against Mr Erdogan.
Turkey's President strongly denies the accusations and said the attack had not targeted "a single group, citizens who joined the rally or a political community but targeted our people as a whole".
An election is due to take place in Turkey on 1 November and Mr Davutoglu has suspended campaigning for three days in light of the bombings, but an official has said there is no possibility the election will be postponed.
