TARGET - ANKARA

Turkey was rocked by another major terrorist act in the past month. On 13 March, at 2045 local time, in the very centre of the capital, a bomb sent a car flying through the air. At the time this magazine went to print the number of dead had reached 37 and 125 people were injured, 20 of them in a serious condition.

The car was blown up at a bus stop next to Guven Park at a time when people were gathering, which explains the large number of victims. As a result of the explosion, one local bus and several cars were completely gutted.

The terrorist act occurred not far from government buildings - just a few hundred metres from the headquarters of the Turkish prime minister. The car used in the terrorist act in Ankara had been hijacked on 10 January. The Haberturk TV channel said that a BMW car had been stolen from an elderly woman in the town of Sanliurfa. That same day it was driven to Diyarbakir and to Ankara on 26 February.

First reports say that the explosion was carried out by two suicide bombers, a man and a woman. The identity of the woman has been established - she was a student at Balikesir University, Seher Cagla Demir, the Turkish media writes. They say that criminal litigation is underway in respect of this student and four of her friends. Seher Cagla Demir and her sisters Hamide, Kader, Sureyya Sakli and Yesim Akurek are charged with taking part in the activities of the terrorist Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK). Fourteen people suspected of involvement in preparing the terrorist attack were swiftly arrested.

Coincidence or conspiracy?

A high threat of terrorism has always existed in Turkey. But in recent months, in the midst of the struggle against the PKK terrorists in the south-east of the country, the conflict in Syria and the deterioration of relations with Russia, terrorist acts in Turkey have become increasingly more frequent.

It is less than a month since the last serious and audacious terrorist act which shook the whole of Turkey. On 17 February, the terrorists' target was a car carrying members of the General Staff. That day 28 people died and 68 were injured. Members of the Kurdistan Freedom Hawks group, who were linked with the PKK, claimed responsibility. Later, Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said in an interview with journalists that as a result of the terrorist act 20 senior military servicemen had been killed, without indicating names or rank.

Immediately after the February terrorist act, the Turkish president rang Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and postponed his planned visit to Baku to attend a session of the Turkey-Azerbaijan high-level Strategic Cooperation Council. The session of the council had to be postponed indefinitely. Literally a day or two ago it was announced that Erdogan would come to Baku on 15 March. And then there was another explosion in Ankara on the day before the visit. Furthermore, on 17-18 March an agreement was expected to be reached in Brussels between the EU and Turkey to settle the migration crisis and to streamline the dispatch of migrants from Syria, Iraq and other unstable regions to Europe. Whether this was pure chance or someone's evil design is at the moment hard to say. The US embassy in Turkey warned about the possibility of a terrorist act a few days ago. In a report on the embassy's website US' citizens were asked to avoid crowded places, especially near government buildings.

After the terrorist act, members of the US embassy confirmed that they had received this information from the Turkish authorities, who had received intelligence reports, the Daily Sabah reports. According to Turkish intelligence, the next series of terrorist acts could take place on 20 March, the Turkish media reports.

The country's president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, pointed to instability in the region in recent years as the main reason for the terrorist act: "I would like to express my condolences to the families of the deceased and I wish those injured a speedy recovery. Because of instability in the region in recent years Turkey has been the target of terrorists. Terrorist organizations and those who use them have taken our citizens in their sights and are treading a most wicked and ruthless path. Our resolve to fight the terrorists is even stronger. This struggle will be successful and the terrorists will be brought to their knees," the Turkish president said.

At this difficult time Azerbaijan was one of the first to support the fraternal people. "We were deeply saddened by the news of the many human lives lost as a result of this merciless terrorist act committed in the city of Ankara," said the message of condolences by Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev. "We are extremely angered by this terrible event, we resolutely condemn terrorism and believe it is important to wage the most acute struggle against it. In connection with this tragedy, on behalf of myself and the people of Azerbaijan I express deep condolences to you, the families and loved ones of the deceased and the fraternal people of Turkey, and I wish the injured a speedy recovery. Allah rahmat elasin!"