Reuters — Turkey pointed the finger at Islamic State on Wednesday for a triple suicide bombing and gun attack that killed 42 people at Istanbul’s main airport, and President Tayyip Erdogan called it a turning point in the global fight against terrorism.
In the deadliest of a series of suicide bombings this year in Turkey, the attackers struck the busy airport, a symbol of Istanbul’s role as the Muslim world’s most open and cosmopolitan city, a crossroads between Europe and Asia.
Three bombers opened fire to create panic outside the airport on Tuesday night, before two of them got inside and blew themselves up. Two hundred and thirty-nine people were wounded, officials said, giving a full account of the bloodshed.
Prime Minister Binali Yildirim said the attackers shot at random to overcome security checks at the international terminal of Ataturk airport. One blew himself up in the departures hall, a second in arrivals, and the third outside.
Authorities said on Wednesday 41 were killed. The figure is now believed to be 42 after Turkish state-run news agency Anadolu reported an injured woman had died.
“Our thoughts on those responsible for the attack lean toward Islamic State,” Yildirim told a news conference in the capital Ankara, adding that investigations should be completed in the coming days and the identities of the bombers revealed.
