Turkey said on Wednesday that a deadly attack was carried out at the headquarters of Turkish Aerospace Industries (TUSAS) near Ankara. The media reported a loud explosion at the site and showed footage of an exchange of gunfire there.
“A terrorist attack was carried out against the TUSAS facilities in Kahramankazan, Ankara. Unfortunately, we have martyrs and injured people,” Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya said on social media X.
Kahramankaza is around 17 miles (28km) to the north west of Ankara city.
“Two terrorists were neutralised in the terror attack on the TUSAS Ankara Kahramankazan site. Sadly, we have 3 martyrs and 14 wounded in the attack,” Yerlikaya said, referring to the Aerospace Industries.
Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan, alongside Russia’s Vladimir Putin at a BRICS conference in the Russian city of Kazan, also called it a terrorist attack.
The cause of the explosion and the subsequent gunfire remained unclear. However, some media reports are claiming that a suicide attack has occurred and that there were hostages inside the building. Officials have not confirmed this.
Witnesses told Reuters that employees inside the building were taken by authorities to shelters and no one was permitted to leave. They said bombings may have taken place at different exits as employees were leaving work for the day.
The state-owned Anadolu Agency said emergency services were dispatched to the site. Some television images showed a damaged gate and an exchange of gunfire in a parking lot. The images showed the attackers carrying assault rifles and backpacks as they entered the building.
Anadolu also said prosecutors had launched an investigation into the attack.
There is also no clarification yet on how many people may have been involved.
TUSAS is one of Turkey’s most important defence and aviation companies. It produces KAAN, the country’s first national combat aircraft, among other projects and has over 10,000 employees. It also produces both military and civilian planes and helicopters, as well as drone systems for the Turkish armed forces and others worldwide.
It is the company designated by the NATO member to be the licenced manufacturer for the US-designed F-16 fighter jets and also plays a role in modernising older aircraft for use by the Turkish military.
(with inputs from Reuters)
