Romania condemns terror attacks
The year 2016 started with fresh terror attacks in Iraq and Turkey masterminded by the Islamic State. Romania has sharply criticized the attacks, reiterating its commitment to fighting terrorism alongside the international community.
România Internațional, 13.01.2016, 14:17
Romania condemns the terror attacks that made scores of victims in Iraq and Turkey on Monday and Tuesday. Terrorism has unfortunately made numerous victims at the beginning of the year, Romanian president Klaus Iohannis said, while condemning the attacks and expressing Romania’s solidarity with the countries affected. The Romanian President has reiterated Bucharest’s commitment to fighting this scourge alongside the international community, adding that all the countries should show more firmness and coordination in their efforts to combat terrorism.
The Romanian Foreign Ministry has also vehemently condemned the terror attack in Istanbul’s historical district of Sultanahmet, pledging support for the Turkish authorities in their efforts to fight all forms of terrorism. The Romanian Foreign Ministry said that no Romanian citizens are among the victims of the attack.
According to the Turkish Prime Minister, Ahmet Davutoglu, the Islamic State is behind the attack. President Tayyip Erdogan has said his country is the first target of all the terrorist organisations in the region, but pledged that Ankara would fight all of them equally. The Turkish authorities have announced that the attacker was a 27-year old Syrian who entered Turkey from Syria.
According to Turkish experts, the place of the attack and its targets are illustrative of the symbolic payload the Islamic State attaches to its attacks. In their opinion the attack came in response to Turkey’s having joined the international anti-Jihadist coalition. The attack in Istanbul came as a follow-up to the bloodiest terror attack in Turkey’s history, which killed 103 people at the central railway station in Ankara in October 2015. Another string of ISIS attacks took place in Baghdad on Monday, where gunmen opened fire on a crowded district, a car bomb went off and other assailants took hundreds of hostages in a shopping center.
The US President Barack Obama has also mentioned terrorist organisations in his latest State of the Union Address before the US Congress, saying that quote “Our foreign policy must be focused on the threat from ISIL and al Qaeda, but it can’t stop there “. Barrack Obama also said that “instability will continue for decades in many parts of the world—in the Middle East, in Afghanistan and Pakistan, in parts of Central America, Africa and Asia. Some of these places may become safe havens for new terrorist networks” unquote.
