Claims Turkish State Had Prior Knowledge Of Ankara Attacks

There is growing evidence that elements within the Turkish state had prior knowledge of the Ankara bombing attack on a major peace rally which killed around 100 people this past Saturday, argues a new article in Özgür Gündem.

The article claims that the current Turkish government used ISIS as a trigger-man for its own policies in an attempt to halt the progress of the HDP and that the attacks in Ankara follow a pattern that began with the attacks on an election rally in Diyarbakir (June 7th) and a gathering of Kurdish and Turkish youth activists in Suruç (July 20th) just across the border from Kobane.

The following evidence is provided in support of these claims:

1. The government of Rojava forwarded warnings to Turkey that a group of attackers connected to ISIS were targeting the HDP and party co-chair Selahattin Demirtaş but despite these warnings the government took no action.
2. AKP leader and Turkish Prime MInister Ahmet Davutoğlu had stated that “we have a list of potential suicide bombers in our possession but according to the law we cannot intervene unless they go into action” despite there existing no such legal obstacles in such cases.
3. Police attacked the survivors and medical staff affiliated with the Turkish Bar Association attempting to help the injured immediately after the attacks although police officials gave no justification for their actions.
4. Ambulances were not allowed to reach the scene of the attacks for 44 minutes despite the fact that there were hospitals located within 2 km of the attack site. Instead police blocked routes to nearby hospitals and refused to allow the speedy transportation of the injured.
5. Despite knowing for days of the planned rally the government took no major security precautions to prevent the attack, a fact which mirrors the attacks in Diyarbakir and Suruç.