AGI – A bomb exploded in the central Istiklal Caddesi, an artery of Istanbul always crowded with residents and tourists, causing six deaths and eighty-one injured.
The powerful explosion took place at 4.20 pm, when the crowd was particularly dense. The bombing has not yet been claimed and has been attributed to “a woman” who “detonated the bomb” by the Turkish Vice President, Fuat Oktay.
“A woman sits on one of the benches there for more than 40 minutes, then gets up. An explosion occurs 1-2 minutes after she gets up. There are two possibilities. Either that bag had a timer inside and it exploded by itself or someone detonated it remotely,” said Justice Minister Bekir Bozdag, who carried out an inspection together with Oktay and Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu.
© YASIN AKGUL / AFP
Attack in Istanbul
Health Minister Fahrettin Koca, for his part, announced that “42 wounded are still hospitalized, including five in intensive care, two in critical condition”.
The Turkish president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, has denounced the “cowardly attack” shortly before leaving for Bali, where the G20 summit will take place. “The first observations suggest a terrorist attack”, said the head of state, who was the first to speak of the “possible involvement” of a woman.
The police immediately set up a large security cordon to prevent access to the areain fear of a second explosion.
“I was 50-55 meters away, suddenly the sound of an explosion was heard. I saw three or four people on the ground,” a witness told France Presse, “people were running in panic. The noise was enormous. There was black smoke. The sound was so loud, it was almost deafening.”
Melons, terrible images, sincere condolences
“The images of Istanbul are terrible, I want to express our deepest condolences to Turkey for the attack suffered and the death of innocent citizens”. This was stated by the Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.
The images of Istanbul are terrible, I want to express our deepest condolences to Turkey for the attack suffered and the death of innocent citizens.
— Giorgia Meloni (@GiorgiaMeloni) November 13, 2022
Tajani, at the moment no Italians are involved
“Italy strongly condemns the cowardly attack that shocked the city of Istanbul today. In expressing solidarity with the families of those affected and best wishes for a speedy recovery to the wounded, Italy reaffirms its closeness to the institutions and to the Turkish people and reaffirms, on the anniversary of the Bataclan massacre, its resolute commitment to the fight against terrorism.
The Consulate General, in close collaboration with the Crisis Unit, immediately took action to verify the possible involvement of compatriots. At the moment there are no Italians either among the victims or among the wounded”. This was stated by the Foreign Minister, Antonio Tajani.
©Twitter Explosion in central Istanbul
The images posted on social networks show several bodies lying at the site of the attack. In the nearby Galata district, many shops closed their shutters early.
The authorities have suffered media banned from broadcasting images of the scene of the massacre to “prevent the spread of fear” and “serve the goals of terrorist organizations”.
Access to social media in Turkey has been restricted since the attack, according to Netblocks. According to the Anadolu agency, 25 people are under investigation for having published “provocative” content related to the attack. The Besiktas-Fraport TAV Antalyaspor football match has been postponed.
BREAKDOWN: At least 4 dead following an explosion in the plant #Istanbul, Turkey. Looks like it was a bomb blast.#improvisation #independence #bomb
pic.twitter.com/geF9jeXtDK— BNL NEWS (@BreakingNLive_) November 13, 2022
Istiklal Caddesu, in the historic district of Beyoglu, is a one and a half kilometer long pedestrian street, home to very popular shops, restaurants and night clubs. The street had been hit by a bombing as early as March 2016, when a suicide bomber killed five people.
Messages of condolences came from all over the world. “All our thoughts to the Turkish people in these difficult times”tweeted the president of the European Council, Charles Michel. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg expressed his “solidarity with our ally”.
“We share your pain“, is instead the message of Emmanuel Macron, on the day in which France commemorates the 130 dead of the attacks of November 13, 2015.
The White House, in a statement, assured that the United States “stand shoulder to shoulder with our Turkish ally within NATO in the fight against terrorism”.
Israel, with whom an uneasy reconciliation has been reached, said that “terror will never win“. And Athens, despite tense relations with Ankara, expressed “its sincere condolences to the Turkish government and people.”
NOTICE – Bomb attack near Taksim square in the heart of the city#Istanbul, in Turkey. Dozens of victims reported. pic.twitter.com/DBWbU2TC7K
— French information (@InfosFrancaises) November 13, 2022
