[Rutles4Ever]

http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml;jsessionid=HE2AH1XTOEPCKCRBAE0CFEY?type=topNews&storyID=5504789

ISTANBUL (Reuters) - A bomb blast ripped through a city bus, killing two people in Istanbul on Thursday, days before President Bush arrives in the country for a NATO summit, Turkish television said.
It was the second bomb blast to rock a Turkish city on Thursday.

The bus was passing in front of a hospital in a residential district of Istanbul, the country's largest city, when the blast occurred, CNN Turk said. Ambulances rushed to the scene. Seven people were hurt.

Earlier on Thursday a small parcel bomb exploded outside the Hilton Hotel in the capital Ankara, where Bush is due to stay on Saturday night before attending the summit in Istanbul. That blast wounded three people.

The Turkish government, which hosts the NATO summit in Istanbul on June 28-29, earlier moved to reassure the public on security arrangements.

"Turkey is a sufficiently strong and secure country. Such incidents happen everywhere, in London, in Paris, everywhere," Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul told reporters, adding that the Bush visit would go ahead as scheduled.

After the first blast, the dollar fell a quarter of a centime against the Swiss franc, a traditional safe haven currency.

Analysts said the blast renewed global security concerns, which since the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks on the United States have tended to damage the dollar.

Bush is due to spend Saturday night at the Hilton in the southern part of Ankara where many embassies are located, before talks on Sunday with Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan and President Ahmet Necdet Sezer.

© Reuters 2004. All Rights Reserved.

[Rutles4Ever]

How "Palestinian" of them to blow up a bus... Wonder if this was a suicide bomber or a planted device....

[San Jacinto]

It seems possible this bomb went off early. Maybe the bomber was taking it to another location but never made it.

[Dog Gone]

Analysts said the blast renewed global security concerns, which since the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks on the United States have tended to damage the dollar.

Reuters is insane.

[Tailback]

Anybody know which neighborhood in Istanbul this happened or which hospital this was near? I'm guessing it was in the district where many embassy staff lived and there was a British privately owned hospital there. The name escapes me right now. (was there in 1988)

[Ragtime Cowgirl]

ISTANBUL - A bomb blast ripped through a city bus, killing two people in Istanbul on Thursday, days before President Bush arrives in the country for a NATO summit, Turkish television said.

Earlier on Thursday a small parcel bomb exploded outside the Hilton Hotel in the capital Ankara, where Bush is due to stay on Saturday night before attending the summit in Istanbul. That blast wounded three people.

The Turkish government . hosts the NATO summit in Istanbul on June 28-29..

 

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Vigilance, ping.

 

        

 (click pic)

 

And CinC. 

 

PresidentialPrayerTeam.org

 

 

~ ~

 

FR Canteen

[thoughtomator]

"Turkey is a sufficiently strong and secure country. Such incidents happen everywhere, in London, in Paris, everywhere," Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul told reporters, adding that the Bush visit would go ahead as scheduled.

I don't recall any bombs going off in Paris. Does FM Gul know something we don't?