Several gunmen launched an attack on a police escort near an election rally for Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan in northern Turkey Wednesday, media reports say. One police officer was killed and two were wounded.
Erdogan already left the Kastamonu rally by the time the attack occurred, according to the Reuters. He left for another rally.
The attack occurred on a road south of the city, when the assailants threw an explosive device and shot at a vehicle carrying police. It was with a bus carrying campaign workers with the AK party, which Erdogan belongs to.
“Those dark minds, these terrorists, these separatists are only able to do this, those who understand there is nothing they can do through the ballot box,” Erdogan said, reported Reuters.
No one has claimed responsibility for the attack, but Erdogan said that separatist militants were responsible. Over the past three decades, the PKK militants have waged a war against Turkey, claiming thousands of lives.
“We will not let anyone divide this land. My mighty nation will never yield to bandits,” he said, according to the BBC.
Erdogan is currently campaigning to win a third term in office elections to be held next month.
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