Turkish police prevented a bomb attack in Ankara today after finding a van packed with explosives, the capital's governor said.
Governor Kemal Onal said: "It is too early to say who was behind this but the bomb was big, and I do not want to think about what might have happened if it had gone off."
Earlier, shops and offices in the central Kurtulus district of Ankara were quickly evacuated after a suspicious vehicle discovered there triggered a bomb alert. It was later declared a false alarm.
Bombings are not uncommon in Turkey, where Kurdish separatists, ultra-leftists and Islamist militants have all carried out attacks.
In May this year, a suicide bombing in a central Ankara shopping centre killed at least six people and injured dozens. Turkish authorities blamed Kurdish guerrillas for that attack, although they denied involvement.
