Turkey’s air force on Wednesday struck Kurdish militant targets in Iraq and Syria following an attack on the headquarters of Turkey’s aviation company TUSAS, killing five people and wounding more than a dozen.
More than 30 targets were “destroyed” in the aerial offensive, Turkey’s defense ministry said in a brief statement.
Two terrorists were also neutralized by the security forces.Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, confirmed the toll, and condemned what he said was a “heinous terrorist attack”.
Local media initially showed footage of massive smoke plumes and fire burning at the location in Kahramankazan, a small town approximately 40 kilometres (25 miles) north of Ankara.The assailants were seen carrying assault rifles and backpacks as they made their way into the facility.
News agency AFP citing Haberturk TV said that there was an ongoing “hostage situation” without providing additional details, while NTV, a private television network, mentioned gunshots following the explosion, which occurred around 4:00 pm (1300 GMT).
No immediate claim of responsibility for the attack has been made. The explosion happened concurrently with a major trade fair for the defense and aerospace industries taking place in Istanbul, which Ukraine’s top diplomat visited earlier this week.
The targeted company, TUSAS, holds a significant position in Turkey’s defense and aviation industry. It produces KAAN, the country’s first national combat aircraft, among other projects, and has over 10,000 employees.