Ankara blast
September 20, 2011
At least three people were killed and 15 injured in a powerful explosion near a high school in the Turkish capital Ankara on Tuesday.
Deputy Prime Minister Bulent Arinc said there was information that a car bomb had caused the explosion, which blew out shop windows and set other cars ablaze.
Local authorities have described the blast as a "terrorist attack".
The assessment has been supported by Turkish Interior Minister Naim Sahin, who said it looked like "the intension was to inflict as much harm as possible."
But some reports suggest a burning gas canister may have been thrown onto the vehicle.
And authorities have not ruled out the possibility that the car's gas tank exploded.
Investigation underway
The explosion took place across the street from a secondary school, but none of the students were harmed.
A woman was arrested nearby, having reportedly shouted "long live our struggle". It has led some observers to believe the explosion may have been the work of Kurdish separatists from southeastern Turkey.
Other reports say the car appeared to have recently been converted to run on LPG autogas, which is cheaper than petrol or diesel. But explosions in such converted vehicles are said to be rare.
Author: Zulfikar Abbany, Sarah Harman (AP, Reuters, AFP)
Editor: Martin Kuebler