51 Killed, 69 Wounded As 12 To 14 Year Old Child Detonates Bomb In Wedding In Turkey

World News Rudolph Rodriquez
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Blood and body parts were sent flying as a bomb was detonated in a wedding party held in the Akdere neighborhood of Sahinbey district, Gaziantep. Gaziantep is a southeastern province of Turkey, located very near to the Syrian border.

Government authorities have linked the bombing to the ISIS or the ISIL, revealing that it was a child between the ages of 12 to 14 that deployed the bomb around 11PM Saturday EEST (UTC+02:00). Whether the child had detonated the explosive device himself, or if adults had detonated the bomb remotely is still under investigation.

The explosion resulted in 51 casualties, while 69 people were left wounded. Of the wounded, 17 were left severely wounded.

The wedding party was a “purely civilian event,” though it was pointed out that the wedding was held for one of the members of the pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP). The newly-married couple had reportedly moved to Gaziantep from Siirt in order to avoid the skirmishes between Kurdish rebels and Turkish forces. The groom was injured, while the bride was left unhurt.

The bomb reportedly went off as the traditional henna night party had been winding down to its close. The traditional henna night party is part of wedding celebrations in the region, where guests’ hands and feet are painted with henna tattoos. It was in the midst of the henna-painted revelry when the bomb went off.

According to one of the witnesses, identified as 25-year-old “Veli Can,” “Blood and body parts were everywhere,” as the explosion went off towards the end of the celebrations. Then in a statement released to Reuters, witness Ibrahim Ozdemir expressed on behalf of the other victims that they “Want to end these massacres.” Ozdemir also emphasized, “We are in pain, especially the women and children.”

The blast even counted a three-month-old baby as part of its casualties.

State leaders, including U.S. ambassador to Turkey John Bass, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, and Russian President Vladimir Putin have expressed their condolences and their condemnation of ISIS’ role in the attack. All of these nations’ leaders have expressed the desire to boost the war on terrorism. Pope Francis has also called for prayers for the victims of the attack. He ended the moment of prayer with a wish “for the gift of peace for everyone.”