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Istanbul airport attack: Toll rises to 42

Updated on: 30 June,2016 07:14 AM IST  | 
Agencies |

In this year’s fourth attack in the city, three suspected ISIS bombers opened fire at Ataturk airport and blew themselves up, killing 42 and injuring 239 people

Istanbul airport attack: Toll rises to 42

Istanbul: A triple suicide bombing and gun attack at Istanbul’s Ataturk airport has killed 42 people, including foreigners, with Turkey’s prime minister saying early signs pointed to an assault by the Islamic State group.


A mother of a victim reacts outside a hospital close to Istanbul
A mother of a victim reacts outside a hospital close to Istanbul's airport. Pic/AFP


The attackers began spraying bullets at the international terminal entrance before blowing themselves up on Tuesday night, Turkish authorities said.


Deadliest attack
It is the deadliest of four attacks to rock Turkey’s biggest city this year, with two others blamed on ISIS and another claimed by a militant Kurdish group. Though there was no immediate claim of responsibility for Tuesday’s carnage, “the evidence points to Daesh”, Prime Minister Binali Yildirim said.

A worker cleans the blood splashed on the roof of the international departure terminal at Istanbul Ataturk airport following Tuesday’s attack. Pic/Getty ImagesA worker cleans the blood splashed on the roof of the international departure terminal at Istanbul Ataturk airport following Tuesday’s attack. Pic/Getty Images

Justice Minister Bekir Bozdag put the number of wounded at 239. The attack prompted the suspension of all flights at the airport — one of Europe’s busiest hubs. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan called for an international “joint fight” against terror, as Western allies including the United States condemned the “heinous” attack.

How it happened
Yildirim said the suicide bombers had arrived in a taxi and opened fire on passengers with automatic rifles before blowing themselves up. Security camera footage widely circulated on social media appeared to capture two of the blasts.

The death toll excluded the three bombers, who arrived in a taxi last night and eventually blew themselves up after coming under fire, according to the government, though there were conflicting reports about exactly where they detonated their explosives.

Earlier, the same official had said none of the attackers got past security checks at the entrance, with two detonating explosives at the international arrivals terminal and the third in the parking lot.

Investigators are examining CCTV footage and mobile phone videos to piece together what one official called a “jigsaw puzzle”. Bullet holes peppered the windows and shattered glass lay on the floor, while abandoned luggage was scattered everywhere.

Tuesday’s attack follows coordinated ISIS suicide bombings at Brussels airport and a city metro station in March that left 32 people dead.

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