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Terror Takes Hold in Erdogan's Turkey as Ankara Struggles to Stem Violence

© AFP 2023 / Adem AltanTurkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan addresses a joint press conference with Yemen's president at the presidential complex in Ankara on February 16, 2016.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan addresses a joint press conference with Yemen's president at the presidential complex in Ankara on February 16, 2016. - Sputnik International
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Turkey has been rocked by a fresh wave of terror after more than 30 people were killed in two separate bombings on Wednesday and Thursday. The violence, which follows numerous attacks in 2015, has highlighted the increasingly dangerous and unstable state of Turkey under President Recep Erdogan.

The car bombing in Ankara, which government officials have blamed on Kurdish militants, and the blast that killed six soldiers while traveling in a military van in the country's southeast, comes amid a worrying rise in attacks over the past couple of years, as Ankara struggles to keep a lid on the violence.

January 2016

The recent attacks weren't the first for Turkey this year, with 10 people killed and 15 others injured in a suicide bomb blast in Istanbul on January 12.

Turkish authorities later identified the suicide bomber as a Daesh-affiliated Syrian man who had entered Turkey as a refugee.

The attacks further highlighted the security concerns associated with Turkey's humanitarian efforts, with country accepting large numbers of people fleeing the conflict in Syria.

December 2015

A cleaner at Turkey's Sabiha Gokcen airport was killed in an early morning bomb attack on December 23.

© Wikipedia / Elelicht Istanbul Sabiha Gokcen International Airport
Istanbul Sabiha Gokcen International Airport - Sputnik International
Istanbul Sabiha Gokcen International Airport

In protests to the Turkish government's military actions against the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), fellow militant group the Kurdistan Freedom Falcons claimed responsibility for the blast, which once again raised questions over how Ankara was managing the long-running feud with Kurdish nationalists.

This followed an earlier attack near Istanbul's Bayrampasa Metro station on December 1, which saw a parcel bomb detonated during evening rush hour, resulting in five people being taken to hospital.

October 2015

103 people were killed and 250 others injured when two suicide bombers detonated explosives at a peace rally in Ankara on October 10.

© REUTERS / Tumay BerkinA man reacts after an explosion during a peace march in Ankara, Turkey, October 10, 2015.
A man reacts after an explosion during a peace march in Ankara, Turkey, October 10, 2015. - Sputnik International
A man reacts after an explosion during a peace march in Ankara, Turkey, October 10, 2015.

The attack, which is the deadliest in Turkey's history, targeted a rally aimed at ending the violence between Turkish government authorities and Kurdish nationalists.

While two Daesh members were identified as the attackers, many raised questions over the target of the blasts and how security allowed such a tragedy to unfold.

August 2015

Five police officers and two others were injured in a targeted bombing attack on a police station in Istanbul on August 10.

© AFP 2023 / Ozan KoseTurkish special police officers patrol in the street after clashes with attackers on August 10, 2015 at the Sultanbeyli district in Istanbul.
Turkish special police officers patrol in the street after clashes with attackers on August 10, 2015 at the Sultanbeyli district in Istanbul. - Sputnik International
Turkish special police officers patrol in the street after clashes with attackers on August 10, 2015 at the Sultanbeyli district in Istanbul.

Authorities said the PKK were responsible for the attack, which came amid the breakdown of a truce between the Kurdish militant group and the government and with an increase in fighting in the country's Kurdish-dominated southeast.

July 2015

Before the Istanbul blast in October, the deadliest attack Turkey had witnessed in many years took place in the town of Suruc on July 20, with 32 killed and more than 100 injured in a suicide bombing.

© AFP 2023 / Ozan KoseProtesters and members of Turkey's People's Democracy Party (HDP) hold a banner with pictures of the victims of the Suruc bomb attack after their peace march was banned by authorities in the Aksaray district of Istanbul on July 26.
Protesters and members of Turkey's People's Democracy Party (HDP) hold a banner with pictures of the victims of the Suruc bomb attack after their peace march was banned by authorities in the Aksaray district of Istanbul on July 26. - Sputnik International
Protesters and members of Turkey's People's Democracy Party (HDP) hold a banner with pictures of the victims of the Suruc bomb attack after their peace march was banned by authorities in the Aksaray district of Istanbul on July 26.

The bomber reportedly had links to Daesh, while many of those targeted were planning to travel to the Syrian city of Kobane to help with rebuilding efforts after the large parts of the city was destroyed during fighting between Kurdish groups and Daesh.

June 2015

The first large-scale terror attack of 2015 took place on June 5, when four people were killed and more than 100 others injured during a bombing at a rally for the pro-Kurdish People's Democratic Party (HDP).

© AFP 2023 / Ilyas AkenginPeople look at smoke from an explosion which injured several people during a rally by the pro-Kurdish People's Democratic Party (HDP) on June 5, 2015 in Diyarbakir.
People look at smoke from an explosion which injured several people during a rally by the pro-Kurdish People's Democratic Party (HDP) on June 5, 2015 in Diyarbakir. - Sputnik International
People look at smoke from an explosion which injured several people during a rally by the pro-Kurdish People's Democratic Party (HDP) on June 5, 2015 in Diyarbakir.

The attack raised widespread suspicion as it occurred just two days before Turkey's parliamentary elections and amid a time of increased support for the party, seen as one of the biggest obstacles for President Erdogan's AK Party.

The culprits for the attack still haven't been identified.

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