Turkish Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya said suspected Kurdish militants set off explosives and opened fire on October 23 in a deadly "terrorist attack" on the facilities of the Turkish state-run aerospace and defense company TUSAS near Ankara.
Yerlikaya said both attackers were "neutralized" in the attack on TUSAS Ankara Kahramankazan, which killed five other people and wounded 22. Three of the injured have been discharged from hospital, and 19 remain under treatment, he said.
Yerlikaya said the militant Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) is suspected of being behind the incident.
"The style of the act shows that it's highly likely the PKK that carried out the attack. Once identification is completed and other evidence becomes clearer, we'll share more concrete information with you," he said.
An investigation has been launched, state-run Anadolu Agency reported.
Defense Minister Yasar Guler also pointed the finger at the PKK, saying its militants receive "the punishment they deserve every time, but they never come to their senses.” He added that Turkey "will pursue them until the last terrorist is eliminated.”
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan condemned the "vile terrorist attack.”
"Our nation should know that the dirty hands reaching out to Turkey will definitely be broken; no structure, no terrorist organization, no evil center targeting our security will be able to achieve their goals," he said on X.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken also condemned the attack on X.
"The United States stands with our Ally Türkiye and strongly condemns today’s terrorist attack," he said.
TUSAS designs, manufactures, and assembles civilian and military aircraft, unmanned aerial vehicles, and other defense industry and space systems.
Video on social media showed what appears to be a large explosion in the area of the company. Security camera video, which was later broadcast on television, showed a man in plainclothes carrying a backpack and holding an assault rifle.
Local media also reported that gunshots could be heard after security forces entered the site. Helicopters were seen flying above the premises. But news media coverage of the attack was temporarily blacked out and authorities also took steps to block access to social media websites.
Kurdish militants, Islamic State, and leftist extremists have carried out attacks in the country in the past.
