According to news reports, the bus was heading to Beyazıt from the Yunus Emre district when someone from a group of around 20 people, who are believed to be linked to the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), threw a Molotov cocktail at the bus, setting it on fire. Nobody was killed or injured in the attack as the bus driver managed to quickly douse the flames with a fire extinguisher.A number of police officers were sent to the scene but were attacked by the same group upon their arrival. The group dispersed as police officers used pepper gas; however, an investigation has been launched to find the attackers. In addition, news reports revealed that the attack was organized because of an assault on former Democratic Society Party (DTP) leader Ahmet Türk, who was punched in the face by an assailant in Samsun on Monday. In a similar incident, Serap Eser, 17, was severely injured in early November when a Molotov cocktail was thrown at a bus. She died later in the hospital where she had been receiving treatment. The attack took place on an unlit street in İstanbul’s Küçükçekmece district; Eser was heading home from a Student Selection Examination (ÖSS) course. Her face and body were badly burned, and she was rushed to Bağcılar State Research and Teaching Hospital. Seven people suspected of being responsible for the attack were detained on Nov. 27 in an operation targeting members of the PKK. The suspects, who were all reportedly around 18 years old, were formally charged with the attack, with a prosecutor demanding life sentences for all suspects on April 3. The indictment against the suspects was sent to the İstanbul 10th High Criminal Court, which is expected to decide on the sentencing soon.
