Attack on Turkish Aerospace Industries leaves several dead and many wounded

An attack on Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI) on the outskirt of Ankara has left four people dead and 14 wounded, the Turkish interior ministry said on Wednesday.

Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya said "two terrorists" also had been "neutralised" during the the incident, which he described as a "terror attack".

Turkish sources familiar with the attack told Middle East Eye that two attackers, one female, hijacked a taxi and approached the gates of TAI,  which employs over 15,000 people.

The attackers are believed to have killed a taxi driver taking them to the scene of the attack and before targeting the entrance with a bomb and clashing with the security guard at the scene.

One of the attackers was able to enter the premises as staff hurried to bomb shelters.

"The attacker then tried to enter the human resources department and the academy", one source told MEE, adding: "11 hostages were later released after a special forces operation that included a gunfight and explosions." 

The source said that the operation against the attackers has ended. 

Turkey has been targeted by a number of armed groups in recent decades, including the Islamic State group, the Kurdistan Workers Party and the Revolutionary People's Liberation Party/Front (DHKP-C).

So far no one has been blamed or claimed responsibility for Wednesday's attack.

CCTV footage released local media appeared to show two armed people with rifles arriving and entering the facility.

Justice Minister Yilmaz Tunc said an investigation has been launched by the Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor's Office regarding the "treacherous" attack, with one deputy chief public prosecutor and eight public prosecutors assigned to the case.

A Turkish court imposed a broadcast ban on the incident. Sources said the government had been throttling the data transfer on social media, such as X and YouTube to calm down the public. 

The attack coincides with a major trade fair for the defence and aerospace industries taking place in Turkey's largest city, Istanbul.

Turkey's defence and aviation industry achieved a new record in export figures in 2023 with total exports of nearly $5.5bn