Who Is Behind the Ankara Bombings?

[Scunner]

Many theories surfacing - what do you think?

[JohnF]

I think my feelings may be obvious from previous postings...

JF

[davybill]

Isis the latest theory?

[Jacqui Harvey]

After reading and listening to all the evidence over the last few days, absolutely no doubt in my mind.  Also, after watching street demonstrations by the Turkish people, whose Goverment has sent out water cannons to greet them, seems the Turkish people are in the know too.   

[villain]

What the official line? Is it "The Kurds bombed a largely Kurdish peace rally (twice), so therefore Turkey must bomb the Kurds in Syria?"

[kevin3]

  Several international observers have mentioned the "deep state".
  The bombings occurred unhindered, no security checks carried out for this gathering.??
  The ambulances were blocked for more than 30 minutes.
  The polis arrived AFTER them.

[JohnF]

To be frank, it doesn't matter who physically planted the bombs (be it suicide bomber or not), what matters is who instigated it and who has most to gain from it.

The PKK bombing their own people under a "false flag" operation as has been suggested by several government officials?  Nah, just doesnt add up - they'd have known that a massive military retaliation (as we seen yesterday) would follow any act like this.  Plus, they're not going to target the only political party (HDP) that gives them hope of a peaceful resolution and it's been a few years since they targeted "civilians", a policy I suspect they're unlikely to return to.

IS...  well, they're an easy organisation to finger as the "bad guys" given their track record, but we've seen no claims by them that they were responsible.  Their PR department is slicker than many Fortune 500 companies and I can't see them passing up an opportunity to take the credit for this horrific act.

So who does that leave us with, and what organisation is likely to be the ultimate beneficiary of the events on Saturday?

If it creates sufficient unrest within Turkey it gives the president a chance to declare a state of emergency, that's one benefit.

If it gives the Turkish government the excuse (in the eyes of the West) to step up bombing raids in the Kurdish held areas of Syria, that's another benefit.

If it loses the HDP votes, from those who traditionally wouldn't have voted HDP, over the possibility it was the PKK thats another benefit.

In my opinion, if the Turkish government were not behind this bombing then it is purely by chance and coincidence that they will profit enormously from it.  In fact, it ticks so many of the boxes in their current wishlist that they couldn't have planned it better themselves... or did they?

For fear of sounding like a conspiracy theorist I'll leave it at that.

JF

[villain]

There's a lot of people putting two and two together, and getting...

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/oct/10/turkey-bombing-ankara-many-will-have-seen-this-attack-coming

[JohnF]

Here's another thought provoking commentary:

The government did not do it, but…

Of course the government did not organize the bloody attack in Ankara. In order to be convinced that the government has donned two suicide bombers with explosive vests and told them, “Dears, you go to the Ankara Central Train Station,” one should really have lost all logic.

But the issue does not end there. There is a “but” in the matter. This “but” is what we should not skip.

Article

JF

[Colwyn]

I have been away for a couple of days and have not followed this closely but I voted "Other" in the poll since I couldn't see anyone discussing the possibility of extreme rightist nationalists being involved in the bombing. Of course, as the Daily News articles states, if the Government deliberately withdrew security from a Kurdish peace rally (the police who stood ready to intervene in the rally itself) then no matter who actually did the bombing then it too would be culpable.