DHAKA: At least 50 people were killed and 73 others wounded, in a blast at a wedding ceremony late on August 20 in southeastern Turkey, the Gaziantep Governor’s Office has said, with the president implying that the perpetrator was likely the Islamic State (IS) of Iraq and Syria.

The terror attack took place in the Beybahçe neighborhood of the Şahinbey district of Gaziantep province, according to a statement by the governor’s office. After its initial inspections at the scene, police said they have found a torn suicide bomb vest.

Turkey President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan condemned the attack in a statement, saying that IS was the “likely perpetrator”, reports hurriyetdailynews.com.

“Those, who cannot overcome Turkey and try to provoke people by abusing ethnic and sectarian sensitiveness, will not prevail,” he said.

“There is no difference between the PKK (Kurdistan Worker’s Party) which martyred 70 security personnel last month, the FETÖ (Fetullahist Terror Organization) as an actor in the July 15 coup bid claiming 240 people and the possible (perpetrator) of the Gaziantep terror attack, Daesh,” he said, using an Arabic acronym for IS.

Erdoğan said the aim of attacks like Gaziantep was to sow division between different groups in Turkey such as Arabs, Kurds and Turkmen and “spread incitement along ethnic and religious lines”.

The wedding took place on a street, a common practice in southern Turkey, especially during the summer.

Prime Minister Binali Yıldırım said in a written statement, “Our pain is very big. However, everyone should make sure that our unity will repel all evil external or domestic attacks”.

The Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP), which is focused on the Kurdish issue, said in a statement that the wedding was for one of its members, and women and children had been among those killed.

Ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) deputy Şamil Tayyar also said the initial data pointed to IS as the suspect.

BDST: 1537 HRS, AUG 21, 2016
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** 30 die in Turkey blast near wedding party