A car bomb tore through a crowded transport hub in the Turkish capital of Ankara on 13 March, killing 37 and wounding at least 125 more, the second such attack in the administrative heart of the city in less than a month. The blast, which could be heard several kilometres away, sent burning debris showering down over an area a few hundred metres from the justice and interior ministries, a top courthouse and the former office of the prime minister.

Footage from Fox TV showed the immediate aftermath of the attack, as rescue workers sought to control the chaos in the vicinity of the blast. Numerous destroyed cars and a bus littered the scene, with one vehicle thrown on to a roadside barrier. The wounded were rushed through the wreckage by clinicians as police with riot shields stood on guard nearby.

Two senior security officials said the first findings suggested that the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), which has waged a three-decade insurgency for Kurdish autonomy, or an affiliated group, was responsible. There was no immediate claim of responsibility, but Interior Minister Efkan Ala said the name of the group behind the attack would likely be announced on 14 March, after initial investigations were completed.

Nato member Turkey faces multiple security threats. As part of a US-led coalition, it is fighting Islamic State (Isis/Daesh) in neighbouring Syria and Iraq. It is also battling PKK militants in its south-east, where a two-and-a-half year ceasefire collapsed last July, triggering the worst violence since the 1990s.