August 21, 2016
On 20 August 2016, a suicide bomb attack was carried out in a street wedding in Beybahçe Neighborhood, Şahinbey District of Gaziantep Province at the evening hours, more than 50 people lost their lives and more than 100 people were indicated to be injured in this attack. In accordance with the initial statements of the Government, the attack was carried out by IS/DAESH, one of the jihadist groups. We offer our condolences to families of deceased people and wish the quick recovery of injured ones. We condemn and damn the driving forces behind the perpetrators of this attack.
The attack was directly carried out in the Beybahçe Neighborhood where Kurds reside intensely and a Kurdish street wedding was targeted. This attack has no difference from the ones carried out to the Kurdish Cantons (Jazira, Afrin and Kobanî) in Rojava, Syria. Basically, the jihadist groups started to carry out attacks to Kurds and revolutionist democrats supporting Kurds in Diyarbakır on 5 June 2015, and continued with the Suruç Attack (Şanlıurfa) on 20 July 2015, the Ankara Attack on 10 October 2015 and the Sultanahmet and İstiklal Avenue attacks (İstanbul). Besides, the jihadist groups previously carried out several attacks against civilians with bomb-laden vehicles in Reyhanlı and performed heavy howitzer and missile attacks to Kilis. As seen, the Republic of Turkey could not take preventive measures against these heavy and increasing attacks performed against the citizens. Certainly, we are of opinion that these omissions have reasons.
- Turkey needs to waive from the adopted Anti-Kurd and Anti-Shia policies and adopt peaceful policies for making an end to the Syrian Civil War, to respect the will of different ethnic and religious groups, most of whom are Kurdish or people preferring living with Kurds, for establishing North Syria Federation, not to object to salvation of this region from the jihadist organizations’ invasion; id est, to waive from the red-line threat for a country which do not have sovereignty.
- Turkey is able to ensure its citizens’ security by following peaceful domestic and foreign policies. In case of establishment of dialog with Abdullah Öcalan and initiation of negotiations once again, the indication of possible non-conflicting environment in the statement made by the KCK (Kurdistan Communities Union) is highly important. The Government needs to pay attention to this call and step into action ensuring domestic peace.
- Turkey’s security and intelligence units need to carry out operations in the places, especially in Gaziantep, Kilis, Şanlıurfa and Hatay, where jihadist groups are densely located, and to arrest and bring them to justice.
As a result, Turkey needs to defeat its image which is remembered with the increasing number of massacres and become a country where peace is spoken.