The Ministry of Foreign Affairs yesterday urged Taiwanese planning to visit Turkey to stay vigilant and consider their personal safety after a Taiwanese student was injured in a terrorist attack in Ankara on Sunday.
“At 6:45pm on Sunday local time, a car bomb exploded in the Kizilay neighborhood of the Turkish capital of Ankara, killing 34 and wounding 125 thus far,” the ministry said in a news release issued yesterday.
According to the BBC, no group has claimed responsibility for the attack, but a security official told Reuters that initial findings pointed to the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) or an affiliated group as the perpetrator.
The ministry said among the injured is a female Taiwanese student studying in Ankara, who sustained minor injuries.
The student’s condition has stabilized after being treated at a local hospital, the ministry said, adding that Taiwan’s Representative to Turkey Cheng Tai-hsiang (鄭泰祥) visited her at the hospital in person to check her status.
The ministry did not disclose the identity of the injured student.
“Our representative office in Turkey has contacted other Taiwanese students and businesspeople based in Ankara, all of whom are safe and sound,” the ministry said.
The office has also contacted Taiwanese currently traveling in other parts of Turkey via telephone or social networking sites, imploring them to ensure their own safety, the ministry added.
“We urge Taiwanese planning to travel to or go on a business trip to Turkey to stay vigilant and avoid going to affected areas,” the ministry said.
Ministry spokesperson Eleanor Wang (王珮玲) later yesterday said that the ministry has decided not to change its “yellow” travel advisory for Turkey.
“Nevertheless, we advise people intending to visit that nation in the near future to be aware of their surroundings and personal safety, and re-evaluate the need for their planned visits,” Wang said.
Under the ministry’s four-color travel alert system, the lowest level is gray, followed by yellow, orange and red. A red alert is the highest warning level and advises people to refrain from traveling to the region in question.
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