At least six people died and 81 others got wounded on Sunday after an explosion rocked a busy pedestrian street in central Istanbul’s Taksim area. Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan called the bomb attack “smells like terrorism”.
Meanwhile, the person who left the bomb was arrested by the police, Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu announced on Monday according to the state-run Anadolu agency’s English-language Twitter account.
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President Recep Tayyip Erdogan termed the blast a “treacherous attack” and asserted that its perpetrators would be punished.
Without offering details of who was behind the attacks, president called it a terror attack but also added that he is not certain yet. The president pointed out that investigations were ongoing by the police and the governor’s office, including reviewing footage of the area.
Erdogan said six people were killed. Vice President Fuat Oktay later updated the wounded toll to 81, with two in serious condition, and also reuttered that the incident appeared to be a “terrorist attack”.
The blast took place on the busy Istiklal pedestrian street, a popular spot among tourists at around 4.20 p.m. local time. The police and fire department rushed to the incident site soon after the blast.
Turkish Justice Minister Bekir Bozdag said that CCTV footage shows a woman sitting on a bench for more than 40 minutes and then getting up one or two minutes before the explosion, leaving a bag or plastic bag behind. He further informed that earlier, a woman, who was suspected of being involved in the attack, was kept in custody.
Bozdag, who made the comments in an interview with privately-owned A Haber news channel, said Turkish security forces believe the woman is the suspect, and officials are investigating her, according to CNN.
“There are two possibilities. Either that bag or plastic bag has a mechanism in it, it explodes on its own or someone detonates it from afar. All of these are currently under investigation.” he added.
India on Sunday condoled the tragic loss of lives in the fatal explosion in Central Istanbul.
Apart from India, the US also condemned the attack and said that they stand shoulder-to-shoulder with their NATO Ally Turkey in countering terrorism.