Instanbul Suicide Bombings (December 2016)
In December 2016, Istanbul experienced a devastating attack involving a car bomb and a subsequent suicide bombing near the Vodafone Arena in the Besiktas neighborhood, shortly after a soccer match. This coordinated assault resulted in the deaths of 46 individuals, including many police officers, and injured over 160 others. The Kurdish militant group Kurdistan Freedom Falcons (TAK) claimed responsibility for the attack, asserting it was a retaliation against Turkish military actions against the Kurdish population. This incident marked a significant escalation in violence in Turkey, where tensions between the government and Kurdish groups have a long and complex history.
The TAK, which emerged from the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) due to disagreements over the approach to negotiations with the Turkish state, has been involved in numerous attacks throughout 2016. Just days after the Istanbul bombing, the TAK also targeted the military in a separate incident in Kayseri, highlighting the ongoing conflict in the region. Following the bombings, Turkish authorities launched a crackdown, detaining numerous individuals linked to Kurdish political movements, further complicating the already strained political landscape. The incident not only deepened the casualties from the ongoing conflict but also intensified discussions surrounding minority rights and national security in Turkey.
Subject Terms
Instanbul Suicide Bombings (December 2016)
Date: December 10, 2016
Place: Istanbul, Turkey
Summary
In December 2016, Istanbul, Turkey, was rocked by a militant attack near a popular sports arena in the city's Besiktas neighborhood, in which a car bomb and a suicide bomb detonated within a minute of each other, killing 46 and injuring more than 160. The Kurdish separatist group Kurdistan Freedom Falcons (TAK) claimed responsibility for the attack.
Key Figures
Recep Tayyip Erdogan: President of Turkey.
Abdullah Ocalan: Kurdish leader and a founder of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK).
Key Events
- February 17, 2016—TAK bombing in the Kizilay neighborhood of Ankara kills 28 members of the Turkish military.
- March 13, 2016—TAK bombing on Ataturk Boulevard in Ankara kills 37 and injures more than 125.
- June 7, 2016—TAK bombing of a police bus in Istanbul kills 7 officers and four civilians.
- December 10, 2016—TAK car bombing and suicide bombing near a stadium in Istanbul kills 46 and wounds more than 166.
- December 20, 2016—TAK car bombing in the city of Kayseri kills 13 soldiers and wounds at least 55.
Status
As of January 2017, the Turkish government has released no information about the perpetrators involved in the attack. While the Kurdistan Freedom Falcons (TAK) claimed sole responsibility, the Turkish government maintains that the group functions as a militant wing of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK). Though Turkish newspapers reported that at least thirteen people had been arrested in connection with the attack, no news was released regarding the identities of the persons arrested. The TAK claimed responsibility for another attack in December, a car bomb detonated in the central Turkish city of Kayseri targeting the Turkish military, which killed thirteen soldiers and wounded fifty-five individuals aboard a military bus. The soldiers attacked in Kayseri were members of the 1st Commando Brigade, one of the main branches of the military involved in recent attacks against Kurdish militants in Turkey.
In-Depth Overview
The Kurdish people are an ethnic group that live in portions of modern Iraq, Turkey, Iran, and Syria, a cultural region collectively known as Kurdistan. In all nations where Kurdish populations currently reside, there have been independence and separatist movements pushing for autonomy or the establishment of a separate Kurdish nation. Although the Turkish government does not keep statistics on the sensitive topic of minority groups in the country, Kurds are known to be the largest minority, estimated to make up around a fifth of the population.
The Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) is a left-wing Kurdish militant organization founded in the late 1970s by Abdullah Ocalan that mounted an armed revolt against the Turkish government in which thousands have been killed on both sides. In the years since Ocalan's capture and imprisonment in 1999, however, the PKK has moderated somewhat, abandoning its call for full independence and calling instead for greater Kurdish autonomy within Turkey.
Founded in 2004, the Kurdistan Freedom Falcons (TAK) broke away from the PKK because of that group's willingness to compromise with the Turkish government, and has since become one of the nation's most active terrorist groups, with an especially high number of attacks in 2016. The Turkish government believes that the TAK is a militant branch of the PKK, rather than an independent organization. Open hostilities resumed between the Turkish government and the PKK in 2015 after the PKK accused Turkish military of conducting airstrikes against Kurds. Since then, there has been an increase in suicide and car bombings by the TAK and other Kurdish militant groups. The TAK was linked to a January 2016 bombing in the Kizilay neighborhood of Ankara that killed twenty-eight members of the military. The group was also linked to a March 2016 attack in Ankara that killed thirty-seven and a June bombing of a police bus that killed seven officers and four civilians in Istanbul.
At approximately 10:30 p.m. on December 10, a car packed with explosives and iron pellets exploded outside of the Vodafone Arena in Istanbul's Besiktas neighborhood, shortly after the end of a soccer match. The attack targeted riot police gathered to prevent violence between supporters of the two teams. The following day, Turkish police announced that thirty-eight people had been killed and at least 160 injured in the attack, many from shrapnel contained within the bomb. Police reported that the car used in the attack had been packed with 300-400 kg of explosives. About forty-five seconds after the car bomb exploded, an individual wearing a suicide vest was apprehended by police at nearby Macka Park. The individual reportedly detonated his or her suicide vest, killing four police officers and a civilian. By February 2017, the total death toll in the twin attacks had risen to forty-six, including thirty-eight police officers.
The day after the attack, the TAK claimed responsibility, saying it was in response to Turkish attacks on Kurds in southeastern Turkey and the government's continued imprisonment of Abdullah Ocalan. Journalists reported that thirteen people had been arrested in connection to the incident, though the government did not release any information about the suspects. On December 12, Turkish news announced that the government had detained 235 members of the People's Democratic Party (HDP), a leftist, pro-Kurdish political party, on allegations that the individuals were secretly allied with, members of, or producing propaganda for the PKK. The heads of the HDP in Ankara, Ibrahim Binici, and in Istanbul, Aysel Guzel, were among those arrested in the crackdown, though some in the media alleged that these arrests were a strategy to weaken political opposition and distract the populace from the government's inability to prevent terrorist attacks.
Bibliography
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Dolan, D., & Gumrukcu, T. (2016, December 12). Kurdish militants claim responsibility for Istanbul attack that killed 38. Reuters. Retrieved from http://www.reuters.com/article/us-turkey-blast-idUSKBN14007C
Istanbul Besiktas Turkey: Stadium blasts kill 38 people. (2016, December 11). BBC News. Retrieved from http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-38276794
Istanbul stadium attacks: Kurdish TAK group claims attacks. (2016, December 11). BBC News. Retrieved from http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-38280638
Khan, S. (2016, December 12). Turkey: 235 people arrested over "Kurdish militant propaganda," Turkish Interior Ministry says. Independent. Retrieved from http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/asia/turkey-235-arrested-kurdish-militant-propaganda-turkish-interior-ministry-erdogan-latest-a7469531.html
Shaheen, K., & Smith, H. (2016, December 11). Turkey vows vengeance after bombing kills 38 and wounds 166. The Guardian. Retrieved from https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/dec/10/bomb-outside-istanbul-football-stadium-causes-multiple-casualties
Turkey says Kurdish militants may be behind football stadium bombing that killed 38. (2016, December 11). The Telegraph. Retrieved from http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/12/10/least-20-injured-suspected-car-bombing-near-turkish-football/