Earlier today, a massive explosion shook the Turkish capital of Ankara, where a vehicle packed with explosives was detonated while military buses were passing by.
It was "an act of terrorism," Deputy Prime Minister Bekir Bozdag said. "We reaffirm our strong partnership with our NATO ally Turkey in combating the shared threat of terrorism attacks," US State Department spokesperson Mark Toner proclaimed.
"The attack targeted a shuttle bus carrying military personnel, and there were several other military vehicles nearby - all of which were waiting at the traffic lights. Most of the casualties are believed to be soldiers," BBC reports, adding that "the Turkish army strongly condemned the attack and called it 'a treacherous terror act'".
Right. A "treacherous terror act" that's sure to be trotted out as an excuse for an invasion of Syria where Kurdish forces are looking to close the Azaz corrider and cut off Sunni rebels from their supply lines to Turkey.
Ankara explosion: Turkish soldiers targeted, PKK or ISIS main suspects. If PKK, Turkish retaliation in Kurdish controlled Syria may follow.
— Jonathan Rugman (@jrug) February 17, 2016
Or, as we put it moments after the blast: "Expect this to be pinned on either ISIS or the PKK. If it's the latter, Ankara will once again claim that the group is working in concert with the YPG and that will be all the evidence Erdogan needs to march across the border."
While we wait to see whether this will indeed serve as the excuse Erdogan needs to send troops into Syria, we bring you the following images from the site of the deadly attack which killed "at least" 28 people.
Via Reuters