Four people were killed and 17 injured in bomb blasts in Turkey's two biggest cities on Thursday just days before US President George W. Bush and other world leaders descend on Istanbul for a Nato summit.
A powerful bomb tore through a crowded bus in Istanbul, killing four and injuring at least 14, hours after another three people were wounded in a small bomb explosion outside an Ankara hotel where Bush is expected to stay Saturday.
Bloodied victims hurled themselves out of the crowded bus after it exploded near a hospital in the European part of Istanbul, a sprawling metropolis hit by a wave of devastating bombings seven months ago.
"I was walking on the avenue when an explosion happened just in front of me. I threw myself to the ground and as the windows of the bus were blown away, people started to throw themselves out of the windows," said Mustafa Kupoglu.
The blasts occurred despite a massive security operation by Turkish authorities for the US leader's visit and the two-day Nato meeting, which opens on Monday in Turkey's largest city.
Istanbul governor Muammer Guler said a leftwing group could be to blame for the bus bombing, but suggested the explosives went off accidentally as they were being carried by a woman passenger who was among the dead.
Also Thursday, police defused a bomb made mainly of fertilisers and diesel found in a bag outside a car shop on the outskirts of the north-western city of Yalova, Anatolia news agency reported. Bush to attend Nato summit despite bombings US President George W. Bush plans to go to Turkey next week despite two bombings there on Thursday, the White House said.
"In terms of the schedule, nothing has changed," said White House spokesman Scott McClellan. Bush is going to Istanbul for the June 28-29 Nato summit, but before that will stop in the Turkish capital of Ankara. His trip begins on Friday, when he leaves for Ireland to attend a US-European Union summit.
A small parcel bomb exploded outside the Hilton Hotel in Ankara where Bush is scheduled to stay on Saturday night. In Istanbul, at least three people were killed when a bomb blast ripped through a city bus.
The bombings rattled financial markets, limiting some gains in the US stock market and sending the dollar down sharply against the euro and the Swiss franc.
McClellan said the bombings in Turkey seemed to be the work of "terrorists" who intended to disrupt the summit.
"At this point we've just seen the reports," McClellan said. "We don't have more details than what you're hearing coming out of Turkey right now. It does appear that the terrorist attacks are intended to disrupt preparations for the upcoming Nato summit."
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