Police in Turkey say they have have defused a potantially lethal bomb hidden under a bus in central Ankara.

Kemal Onal, the capital's governor, said that a large amount of explosives were found in the bus which was parked in a garage and had a fake licence plate.

Bomb disposal experts arrived at the scene on Tuesday morning, as residents living near the garage were evacuated.

Onal said: "The meticulous work of the police averted a possible catastrophe... I do not even want to think about what would have happened if the attack had succeeded."

Bombers linked to al-Qaeda hit Istanbul in 2003 with truck bombs, killing 58 people in attacks that had targeted two synagogues, the British Consulate and a British bank.

In February, a court sentenced seven people to life in prison for the bombings.

PHOTO CAPTION

Turkish police forces stand guards at the entrance of the Presidential Palace in Ankara, 2006. (AFP)

Al-Jazeera