“We completely condemn terror. Nothing can justify the killing of innocent people,” the Anatolia news agency quoted Erdoğan as telling Maliki. The telephone conversation took place on Sunday evening from Islamabad as the prime minister was in the Pakistani capital for an official visit. Erdoğan highlighted the need for a joint struggle against terrorism, while pledging brotherly solidarity with the Iraqi people.
Earlier on Sunday, Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu, who accompanied Erdoğan during the visit, called his counterpart, Hoshyar Zebari, to offer emergency assistance to Iraq.
“The first call came from Turkey as usual,” Zebari was quoted by Anatolia as telling Davutoğlu.
Sunday’s bombings, near the Justice Ministry and the Baghdad provincial government building, ripped through cars, killing many people. They are the bloodiest to have taken place in the Iraqi capital since mid-2007. The death toll from the bombings has risen to 155 with more than 500 wounded, police said on Monday.
“We call on everybody to be more vigilant and act in solidarity against terrorism. There is the possibility of an increase in these kinds of violent actions, which aim to break the will of the friendly and brotherly Iraqi people living together in peace, in the run-up to the parliamentary elections scheduled for January 2010, which are very important for the future of Iraq,” the Turkish Foreign Ministry said in a written statement released Sunday.
