ISTANBUL: Dozens killed and over 140 were injured when suicide attackers attacked Istanbul’s busy Ataturk Airport. Turkish officials blamed the massacre at the international terminal on three suspected Islamic State group militants.
Binali Yildirim, Turkish Prime Minister told to media that 41 were dead including three suicide bombers .
A senior government official who spoke on condition of anonymity in line with government protocol said the death toll could climb much higher. He first told local media that close to 50 people had already died, but later said that the figure was expected to rise to close to 50.
Hundreds of terrified passengers streamed out of the airport. The recent bombings in Turkey has have scared off tourists and hurt the Turkish economy, which relies heavily on tourism.
Hevin Zini, 12, a witness who just arrived from Duesseldorf, Germany, with her family said, “There was blood on the ground.” She told the Associated Press that, “Everything was blown up to bits… if we had arrived two minutes earlier, it could have been us.”
An eyewitness told news agency Reuters that one of the attackers “randomly opened fire” as he walked through the terminal building, shortly before three explosions.
Another witness, Paul Roos, 77, a South African tourist told and as reported in media said, “We came right to international departures and saw the man randomly shooting. He was just firing at anyone coming in front of him. He was wearing all black. His face was not masked. I was 50 meters away from him.”
“We ducked behind a counter but I stood up and watched him. Two explosions went off shortly after one another. By that time he had stopped shooting,” Roos told Reuters.
“He turned around and started coming toward us. He was holding his gun inside his jacket. He looked around anxiously to see if anyone was going to stop him and then went down the escalator … We heard some more gunfire and then another explosion, and then it was over.”
Talking to reporters, Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim, said all initial indications suggested the Islamic State group was behind the attacks.
“The findings of our security forces point at the Daesh organization as the perpetrators of this terror attack,” Yildirim said, using the Arabic name for IS. “Even though the indications suggest Daesh, our investigations are continuing.”
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