Six suspects get aggravated life terms over 2016 Ankara bombing

ANKARA

A Turkish court on Sept. 10 sentenced six defendants to 30 counts of aggravated life imprisonment for the 2016 Ankara bombing, which claimed 29 lives. 

The deadly Ankara blast occurred during the evening rush hour on Merasim Street, which connects Dikmen Street to İnönü Boulevard, close to the Turkish General Staff and parliament buildings.

The attack targeted shuttles carrying military personnel, killing 29 people. The authorities had arrested 15 amid investigations.

The attack happened at a time when a high-level security meeting was being held at the Presidential Palace under the chairmanship of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.

Erdoğan had called the bombing an assault on “the heart of the nation.”

“It should be known that Turkey will not refrain from deploying its legitimate self-defense right at all times, everywhere and under all circumstances,” he had said, promising decisive action against the still unidentified perpetrators.