Three Explosions Rock Downtown Istanbul
Thursday, November 20, 2003
ISTANBUL, Turkey — Three explosions rocked downtown Istanbul (search) on Thursday, as suspected car bombs hit targets including the headquarters of London-based HSBC bank and also the British consulate, television stations reported.
Turkish television reports quoted health officials as saying that five were killed and 169 injured, but other reports said at least 11 were killed.
Reuters news service reported that White House spokesman Sean McCormack -- traveling with George Bush in London -- promtly issued a White House statement, saying "we're monitoring the situation in the wake of these apparent terrorist attacks."
Sky Turk reporter Mustafa Azizoglu told Fox News "this is not an ordinary attack," and said "this is the eleventh of September for Istanbul."
Azizoglu added that the explosions were "trying to target Western financial institutions."
British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw (search) said three or four British employees from the consulate have not reported to a roll call following blasts. Speaking in London, he described the blasts as "clearly appalling acts of terrorism" and said they bore "all the hallmarks" of the Al Qaeda (search) terror network and associated groups.
In Istanbul, body parts were scattered in front of the HSBC bank in the Levent district, NTV said. HSBC is the world's second-largest bank.
Media reports said there were up to four explosions in Istanbul, but police later confirmed only two.
Another bomb ripped off the wall surrounding the garden of the British consulate in downtown Beyoglu district. NTV said the consulate attack appeared to be a suicide strike with an explosive-laden pickup truck. The truck smashed into the consulate wall, it said.
The blasts followed Saturday's homicide attacks on two Istanbul synagogues by two Turkish Islamic militants that killed 23 people.
On Wednesday, authorities arrested six people in connection with the synagogue bombings. A Turkish court charged five with "attempting to overthrow the constitutional structure," which carries a sentence of life imprisonment. A sixth person was charged with "helping illegal organizations," punishable by five years in prison, Anatolia said.
No trial date has been set.
Two homicide attackers, both Turks, blew up pickup trucks outside the synagogues on Saturday, killing 23 people and the two bombers. Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul said the two had visited Afghanistan in the past and that investigators were looking for any Al Qaeda links.
On Sunday, the Al Qaeda terror network claimed responsibility for the bombings in messages to two Arabic-language newspapers, but it was not possible to authenticate those claims. An outlawed Turkish radical group called the Islamic Great Eastern Raiders' Front, or IBDA-C, also claimed responsibility, but Turkish authorities said the attack was too sophisticated to be carried out by that group.
The Associated Press
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