PM Kakar condemns 'dastardly terrorist attack' in Ankara

Caretaker Prime Minister Anwaarul Haq Kakar on Sunday condemned the “dastardly” terrorist attack in Ankara and expressed solidarity with the people of Turkiye.

The prime minister, via his social media X handle, expressed complete solidarity with the Turkish nation, endorsing his trust in President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in his fight against the “scourge of terrorism”.

“We stand in complete solidarity with our Turkish brothers and sisters in the fight against the scourge of terrorism. I have no doubt that under the dynamic leadership of my brother (President Recep Tayyip Erdogan), the resolute Turkish nation will emerge ever stronger from this challenge,” the PM said.

Separately, in a press release shared by PM Office Media Wing, the prime minister extended sympathies of the Pakistani nation to the people of brotherly country Turkiye. He also prayed for the swift recovery of the injured.

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Meanwhile, the Foreign Ministry added its voice in condemning the horrendous incident occurred in Turkiye. In a statement, it said that Pakistan “strongly condemns the terrorist attack targeting the Ministry of Internal Affairs of brotherly Turkiye earlier today”.

The ministry on behalf of the Pakistani nation prayed for the swift and complete recovery of those injured in this “heinous attack”.

It also expressed hope on the Turkish nation to “defeat this menace[of terrorism] and emerge ever stronger”.

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Earlier, Turkiye's government said that two terrorists carried out a bomb attack on Sunday in front of the Interior Ministry buildings in Ankara, leaving both of them dead and wounding two police officers in the capital city's first blast in years.

They drove up to the building's main entrance and set off the explosion in the area that is home to ministerial buildings and parliament, Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya said. The blast killed one of the attackers and authorities "neutralised" the other, he added.

"Two terrorists came with a light commercial vehicle in front of the entrance gate of the General Directorate of Security of our Ministry of Internal Affairs and carried out a bomb attack," he wrote on X, formerly Twitter.

"Our struggle will continue until the last terrorist is neutralised," Yerlikaya wrote.

Turkish media earlier reported that an explosion was heard near the parliament and ministerial buildings, and broadcasters showed footage of debris scattered on a street near the Interior Ministry.

Reuters footage after the blast showed a Renault cargo vehicle parked, windows shattered and doors open, amid debris scattered on the street surrounded by soldiers, police, ambulances, fire trucks and armoured vehicles.

The bomb on Ataturk Boulevard was the first in Ankara since 2016, and comes on the day that President Tayyip Erdogan is set to attend the opening session of parliament, located one kilometre (mile) away.

A senior Turkish official told Reuters the attackers had hijacked the vehicle and killed its driver in Kayseri, a city 260km southeast of Ankara, before carrying out the attack. One of the injured officers suffered shrapnel injuries, he added.