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Sunday, February 3, 2013

Turkish Marxist Group Claims Responsibility for US Embassy Blast


A radical Turkish Marxist group has claimed responsibility for a Friday suicide bombing at the U.S. Embassy complex in Ankara that killed a Turkish guard.

In a statement posted on the Internet Saturday, the Revolutionary People's Liberation Party Front (DHKP-C) called the U.S. the "murderer of the peoples of the world."

The group said its "warrior" had carried out an act of "self-sacrifice."  The group identified the bomber as Alisan Sanli and included a photo of him brandishing weapons.


Turkish news organizations say authorities have detained three people in connection with the attack. The news reports say the three were detained by police during operations in Ankara and Istanbul. 

On Friday, Turkish authorities said they suspected the left-wing militant group was linked to the blast that also wounded a well-known Turkish broadcaster, Didem Tuncay.

The U.S. and the European Union have branded DHKP-C as a terrorist organization. The group, which strongly opposes U.S. influence on Turkey's foreign policy, is believed to be responsible for a string of deadly attacks over the past few decades.

Turkey's Anadolu news agency says the suicide bomber had entered Turkey illegally.  The news agency reported the interior ministry said the bomber used a fake identity.

On Friday, a reporter for VOA's Turkish service said the guard was killed near an X-ray machine at an embassy checkpoint. 

The attack is the second on U.S. diplomatic offices in Turkey in five years.  In 2008, three gunmen and three policemen were killed in an attack outside the U.S. consulate in Istanbul.

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