SHAFAQNA – A suicide bomber reportedly targeted a wedding ceremony in the city of Gaziantep in southern Turkey near the border with Syria on Saturday night. The local governor said it was carried out by “terrorist organizations.”
Turkish national broadcaster NTV confirmed the news, saying a “terrorist attack” had targeted a wedding celebration.
Gaziantep’teki hain saldırıda çok sayıda can kaybı ve yaralı var. Teröre, teröriste ve destekçisine lanet olsun pic.twitter.com/qzOFRxZN8o
— Hasan Cücük (@HasanCucuk) August 20, 2016
Gaziantep Governor Ali Yerlikaya has released a statement saying the blast was an attack by “terrorist organizations,” according to Turkish Haberturk news outlet.
Infamous for its alleged connection to Daesh, and Wahhabi radicalism in general, some experts have theorised that such an attack could be meant as a warning to Turkish President Erdogan in relation to his sudden rapprochement with Russia, and Iran.
Earlier this August, Turkey has signaled a strong desire to reinvent its relations with its neighbours – a knee-jerk reaction to the CIA-backed foiled coup carried out against Ankara this Summer.