PKK bomb attack inflicts damage on Şırnak cultural center

ŞIRNAK – Anadolu Agency

DHA Photo

A bomb attack by the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) on a cultural center in gthe southeastern Şırnak province has inflicted grave damage, rendering the compound’s library, cinema and movie theatre unusable. 

Reports indicate that over 30,000 books inside the public library were burnt in the attack in which PKK militants placed improvised explosive devices inside the center’s boiler room while security forces were conducting an operation nearby. 

While the movie theatre and the theater hall were severely damaged, pieces of furniture which could be saved were transferred to the provincial directorate of youth and sports. The directorate will temporarily serve as a library until the renovation of the burnt center is complete. 

A 21-year-old student who wished to remain anonymous spoken to Turkey’s state-run Anadolu Agency, saying the real damage was done to students.

“My home is crowded, I have seven siblings. I come to the library every day to prepare for my exams in a quiet environment. I no longer have a place to go,” the student was quoted as saying. 

The attack on Dec. 25 wounded six civilians, four students and two library personnel, as a fire erupted inside the building following the explosion.