Car bomb attack kills 18 at Turkish military checkpoint

ANKARA, Turkey - Eighteen people were killed Sunday when a van packed with five tons of explosives blew up in Turkey's restive southeast, the prime minister said, in an attack blamed on Kurdish militants.

The bombing, which killed 10 soldiers and eight civilians, was one of the deadliest attacks on Turkish security forces since the attempted coup of July 15 when a rogue military faction tried to oust President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

"The attack was perpetrated by a suicide bomber who detonated a van (packed) with five tonnes of explosives," Prime Minister Binali Yildirim told a news conference in Istanbul.

The attack targeted a security post in Hakkari province as security forces were searching vehicles in Semdinli district, the official news agency Anadolu said.

In a statement, the Hakkari governor said a vehicle refused to stop as it approached a checkpoint, resulting in soldiers responding with gunfire.

Militants then also started shooting, the governor's office said, quoted by Dogan news agency.

Another 27 people were injured in the blast caused by the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), Erdogan said in a written statement. Anadolu reported at least 16 of those were civilians.

Soon after the attack, which Anadolu said left a seven-meter (22-foot) deep hole in the road, the military confirmed it had begun a large-scale air operation which the governor's office said was launched to "neutralize" PKK militants.

The governor said commando units on the ground were continuing to search for PKK fighters.

'HEINOUS TERRORIST ATTACK'

Deputy Prime Minister Numan Kurtulmus described Sunday's incident as an "atrocious" and "heinous terrorist attack", vowing on Twitter that Turkey would never surrender to militant groups.

The White House said it condemned "in the strongest terms the deadly terrorist attack today against a military checkpoint in southeastern Turkey that left many dead, including civilians, and scores more wounded."

"We remain steadfast in our support for our NATO ally, Turkey, and reaffirm our commitment to continue working together to defeat all forms of terrorism," Ned Price, the White House National Security Council spokesman said.

Over the past two months, the military says it has killed a total of 387 PKK militants in Hakkari province, CNN-Turk reported.

The PKK has waged a 32-year insurgency against the Turkish state, which has left nearly 40,000 dead since 1984. The group is proscribed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the United States and the European Union.

Since the collapse of a two-and-a-half-year ceasefire in July 2015, more than 600 security forces and 7,000 PKK militants have been killed, according to Anadolu.

Over the past 15 months, attacks on the Turkish security forces have continued on an almost daily basis as the government has pressed military operations against the PKK to rid urban areas of fighters.

Hakkari is a flashpoint in the renewed conflict. On Saturday the Turkish armed forces said it "neutralized" eight PKK militants in Cukurcu district after clashes with the group, Anadolu reported.

FIGHT WILL GO ON

Yildirim vowed that Turkey would continue with determination its "fight against the separatist terrorist organisation (PKK)... and all kinds of terrorist organisations" including jihadists from the Islamic State (IS) group.

Meanwhile, Erdogan promised: "The state with all its institutions, hand in hand with the people, is determined to stop the actions of the separatist terrorist organisation (PKK)."

The bombing comes a day after two suspects believed to have been preparing a car bomb attack blew themselves up on the outskirts of Ankara when police ordered them to surrender.

Turkish officials said they believed the pair were linked to the PKK.

The attack also took place a day before the year anniversary of the bloodiest attack in Turkey's modern history when 103 people were killed and more than 500 wounded in twin suicide bombings targeting a pro-Kurdish peace rally in the capital, Ankara.

That attack was blamed on IS.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Turkey pulls plug on 20 radio, TV channels in post-coup emergency decree

ISTANBUL - Turkey has ordered the closure of 20 television and radio stations, including one that airs children's programs, on charges they spread "terrorist propaganda", adding to fears that emergency rule is being used to stifle the media.

President Tayyip Erdogan has said he wants a three-month state of emergency, imposed after a failed coup attempt in July, to be prolonged past October so authorities can eradicate the threat posed by a religious movement blamed for the attempt, as well as Kurdish militants who have waged a 32-year insurgency.

The banned channels are owned or operated by Kurds or the Alevi religious minority, according to Hamza Aktan, news editor at IMC TV, a news broadcaster slated for closure. He cited a copy of the decision obtained by his channel, which was based on powers given the government in a decree issued in July.

"This has nothing to do with the coup. It is an effort to silence the last independent media covering the Kurdish issue and violations committed by the state," Aktan told Reuters.

IMC has aired reports looking at security forces' conduct during 14 months of military operations against the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) that has killed thousands.

Among the 12 shuttered television channels are Govend TV, which plays folk music, and Zarok TV, which airs Kurdish-language children's cartoons. The decision also shut 11 radio stations for harming national security, Aktan said.

"Turkey is targeting a wide swath of cultural and political expression by shuttering minority broadcasters," Robert Mahoney of the Committee to Protect Journalists said. "When the government sees even children's programming as a threat to national security, it is clearly abusing its emergency powers."

RULE BY DECREE

An official at the Radio and Television Supreme Council, the state watchdog, confirmed 20 stations were being closed.

Erdogan argues the state of emergency is helping authorities swiftly root out supporters of the military uprising by bypassing parliament to enact laws and suspend rights.

Turkey blames US-based Muslim preacher Fethullah Gulen for masterminding the coup in which 240 soldiers, police and civilians were killed trying to stop rogue troops who had commandeered fighter jets and tanks to bomb parliament and shoot protesters. Another 100 people behind the putsch were killed.

Some 100,000 state employees suspected of links with the Gulen movement have been purged, and 32,000 people are in jail for their alleged role in the coup. Gulen denies involvement.

Authorities have also targeted the media, arresting dozens of members of the press to make Turkey the world's biggest jailer of journalists and shutting down scores of media outlets.

Aktan and other IMC staff continued airing segments on Friday while waiting for police to arrive at their offices. Other stations on the closure list were raided and sealed off on Thursday, newspapers and CPJ said.

IMC, founded in 2011, has faced other punitive measures. In February, its satellite feed was cut while prosecutors investigate if it supports the PKK.

Aktan denied any links between IMC and the militants, citing the channel's principles of objectivity.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com