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JEFFREY BROWN (Newshour): For the second time in five months, a U.S. diplomatic post has been the target of a deadly assault.
A suicide bomber detonated a vest with explosives outside the U.S. Embassy in Ankara, Turkey, today, killing himself and a security guard. The White House described it as a terrorist attack.
The explosion occurred around 1:15 p.m. local time. Afterward, police tried to hold back the crowd gathered outside the U.S. facility in the Turkish capital. Debris littered the street near a side entrance where the blast took place. Emergency workers wheeled one of the injured into an awaiting ambulance.
U.S. Ambassador to Turkey Francis Ricciardone spoke to reporters outside the embassy.
FRANCIS RICCIARDONE, U.S. Ambassador to Turkey: Right now, we are all dealing with our sadness at the loss of our fellow member of our embassy. We salute his bravery, his service to Turkey and to Turkish-American friendship. Our hearts go out to his family.
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JEFFREY BROWN: Now, the Turkish interior minister said the bomber was a member of a far left group. What is known about this group and why they might attack a U.S. facility?
TULIN DALOGLU, Al-Monitor: Well, this group, named Revolutionary People's Liberation Party, in Turkish, we call it, with an abbreviation, DHKP-C, was founded in 1978.
And it's a secular terrorist organization, different from the Islamist-leaning terrorist organizations. It embraces a Marxist-Leninist ideology. It is anti-imperialist, anti-U.S. and anti-NATO, for that matter. It has attacked U.S. interests and facilities during and before and after the first Gulf War.
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