SUICIDE ATTACK IN ISTAMBUL

Wednesday, January 13th 2016. This Tuesday, terror took over one of Istanbul’s busiest squares; passersby and visitors were victim of a suicide attack, which left 10 people injured and at least 15 wounded, two of them in serious health condition; according to Turkish authorities.

The incident happened at Sultanahmet Square at 10:20 am local time, when hundreds of people were surprised by a strong explosion, which caused ten fatal victims. According to investigations, the explosion was caused by a terrorist who suicided by activating the bomb.

This square is visited daily by a great number of tourists since it is very close to two of the Bosporus city’s most famous touristic attractions, the Blue Mosque and Hagia Sophia; it is well-known that a great deal of the victims are visitors, mostly from Germany. In the next video from Telesur news channel on YouTube, parts of the event are seen:

The German Chancellor Angela Merkel has manifested against this outrage, and condemned the deaths stating that “international terrorism has shown its snake head and revealed the need to fight it with unity and stalwart determination”. Furthermore, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Frank-Walter Steinmeir; expressed his condolences to the victims’ families for this barbarism. Likewise, the German Consulate in Istanbul and the Embassy in Ankara; will be providing support to the wounded.

In turn, Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davotoglu as well as President Recep Tayyip Erdogan; reported that after investigation and some evidence collected from the scene –an id belonging to the attacker among them- it was now known that he was from Syrian origin and was born in 1988.

Likewise, the Turkish presumes the attacker might be linked to ISIS; since last year they charged tragically against Turkey. The first time, in July around Suruc, where at least 30 people died; the second time, happened in October at the Turkish capital Ankara, where a hundred people perished; this one is the last of the most devastating series of attacks on the Turkish country. Since then, the government has been fighting these terrorist groups who threaten the safety of the inhabitants, and even tourists in this case.

President Erdogan stated “Turkey is the prime target of all terrorist organizations acting in the region, for we fight against them fiercely”. At the same time, he called everyone to show solidarity about the events, as they ought to “remain shoulder by shoulder” in order to fight against terrorism.

These events in Istanbul, add up to the long list of terrorist attacks that become more and more common around the world; challenging the peace of many innocent citizens who are victims of these attacks.