The Istanbul Bombings were two terrorist attacks carried out on two days in November 2003. They have been blamed on the al-Qaeda terrorist network.

On November 15, 2003, two truck bombs slammed into the Beth Israel and Neve Shalom synagogues in Istanbul, Turkey and exploded. The explosions devastated the synagogues and killed 27 people, most of them Turkish Muslims. The suicide bombers also died. The blasts littered streets with debris, and wounded more than 300 others. A Turkish militant group (IBDA-C) claimeded responsibility for the blasts, but Turkish Government Officials dismissed the validity of this claim by pointing out that the minor group did not have enough resources to carry out such an intricately planned and expensive attack.

Five days later, on November 20, as US President George W. Bush was in Great Britain meeting with Prime Minister Tony Blair, two more truck bombs exploded. Suicide bombers detonated the vehicles at the HSBC Bank and the British Consulate, killing 30 people and wounding 400 others. It has been noted with disgust that the bombers have waited for the traffic lights in front of the HSBC headquarters to turn red to maximize the effects of their assault. Several Britons were killed in the two attacks, including the top British official in Istanbul, consul general Roger Short, but most of the victims were Turkish Muslims, as in the earlier synagogue blasts. Police say that the bombers may have timed the attacks to coincide with Bush's visit.

Both Mr. Bush and Mr. Blair denounced the attacks in a news conference in Britain a few hours later. The Turkish Government vowed a crack down on terrorists, arresting dozens of suspects including some who tried to flee into Iran. The two attacks, combined, killed 57 people (not counting the 4 bombers) and were the deadliest bombings in Turkey's history. By late 2003, Turkey said it had broken up the cell that had carried out the bombings.

Al-Qaeda later claimed responsibility for both series of attacks. Some captured suspects said that Osama bin Laden himself ordered the attacks, but rather wished to hit a US military base in Turkey. He was also reportedly said to have been angered that so many Muslims died in the bombings.

The attacks themselves had little or no impact on Istanbul life, however, as the cosmopolitan city had been a melting pot of different groups living in harmony for centuries.

References

• Istanbul rocked by double bombing (BBC) http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/3222608.stm