U.S. 'strongly' condemns terror attack on Turkish Aerospace Industries headquarters in Ankara

The Biden administration strongly condemned Wednesday a fatal terrorist attack on the Ankara headquarters of Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI) that killed at least five people and injured 22 others.

White House's National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby extended Washington's thoughts to "the victims of the horrible terror attack in Ankara, Turkey."

"This morning, our prayers are with all of those affected and their families, and of course, also the people of Turkey at this very difficult time," he told reporters at a briefing.

"Turkish authorities, as they said it, are investigating this as a possible terrorist attack, and while we don't yet know the motive or who is exactly behind it, we strongly condemn this act of violence," he added.

An explosion and gunshots were heard Wednesday at TAI's facilities in Ankara's Kahramankazan district.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan condemned the "heinous attack," saying it targeted the country's "survival, peace and defense initiatives."

"The terrorist attack against TAI, one of the locomotive organizations of the Turkish defense industry, is a despicable attack targeting the survival of our country, the peace of our nation, and our defense initiatives that are the symbol of our ideal of 'Fully Independent Türkiye'," President Erdoğan said on X.

"From the first moment of the terrorist attack, our security forces quickly intervened and neutralized the terrorists," he said.

Security forces, firefighters, and paramedics were dispatched to the area, while the defense industry firm's personnel were directed to shelters for security reasons.

The Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor's Office has launched an investigation into the attack.