ISTANBUL, June 29 — At least 36 people were killed and 147 others injured in two explosions that hit the Ataturk Airport, the largest in Istanbul on Tuesday evening and involved three suicide bombers, forcing the suspension of all flights.
“We’re evaluating the possibility of three suicide bombers,” Istanbul Governor Vasip Sahin told the press at the airport.
Attack at Istanbul airport leaves at least 36 dead https://t.co/kHTDHfOD1t pic.twitter.com/eIuN8swXM6
— NYT Photo (@nytimesphoto) June 29, 2016
Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim on Wednesday blamed the Islamic State (IS) for the terrorist attacks on Istanbul’s Ataturk Airport that killed 36 people and injured many others.
Turkish Justice Minister Bekir Bozdag said earlier in Ankara that one terrorist opened fire with a Kalashnikov rifle at random and then blew himself up.
A Turkish official was quoted as saying on Twitter that the vast majority of casualties are Turkish citizens, with foreigners among the dead and wounded.
The police have closed the entrances and exits of the airport, and some inbound flights to the airport have been diverted in the aftermath of the attacks, press reports said.
Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim has ordered the formation of a crisis desk and was coming to Istanbul overnight.
This is the latest information on the attack on the main airport in Istanbul https://t.co/3WyBZbadRy
— Sky News (@SkyNews) June 29, 2016
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan pledged continued battle “against all terrorist organizations at all costs until the end of terrorism.”
Kerem Kinik, the head of Turkish Red Crescent, has appealed for blood donation.
Following the attacks, all flights at the airport were suspended, and entrances and exits were sealed, reports said. But the flights will resume soon, according to the police.
The security situation in Turkey has deteriorated over the past year, with Istanbul, the national capital of Ankara and other cities having already been hit by a number of bombing attacks.
The latest attack that hit Istanbul occurred on June 7, in which a bomb-laden car targeted a riot police shuttle bus, killing 11 people, including six police officers.
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