Unknown gunmen attack nationalist party office in Istanbul

ISTANBUL

The police said the bureau was empty at the time of the attack, which took place Feb. 6 at around 11 p.m. AA Photo

The Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) election bureau in Istanbul’s Okmeydanı neighborhood has been attacked by unknown people with Molotov Cocktails and gun shots.

The police said the bureau was empty at the time of the attack, which took place Feb. 6 at around 11 p.m.

The attack comes in the wake of a gun assault on the party’s campaign office two weeks ago that killed an adviser, Fatih Akyıldız, and injured seven members.

Another gun assault carried out Jan. 27 targeted the municipal building in Şişli in an apparent attempt to target Şişli mayor Mustafa Sarıgül. Sarıgül is the main opposition Republican People’s Party’s (CHP) mayoral candidate for Istanbul in the March 30 local elections.

The MHP’s Beyoğlu district branch head Murat Doğan said Okmeydanı was a problematic area, and stressed that current security measures were insufficient.

The party’s candidate for Beyoğlu, Osman Gür, suggested that more attacks would take place before the elections. “We are encouraging all institutions to prevent similar incidents from happening again,” Gür said.

Following the Esenyurt attack, MHP head Devlet Bahçeli urged the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) to shed light on the incident, while the government has vowed to take additional security measures ahead of the elections.