DUSHANBE, January 12, 2016, Asia-Plus — An explosion in the heart of Istanbul”s historic Sultanahmet tourist district killed at least ten people and wounded 15 on Tuesday and some local media reports said a suicide bomber may have been responsible.
Six German citizens, one Norwegian and one Peruvian were among the wounded, the
Dogan
news agency said.
A tour company official told
Reuters
a group from Germany was in the area at the time but said there was no immediate information on whether any of them had been injured.
An official at the German foreign ministry said it could not be ruled out that German citizens may have been injured and that its crisis unit and the consulate in Istanbul were urgently working with the Turkish authorities to find out.
According to
Reuters
, Norway”s foreign ministry said one Norwegian man was injured and was being treated in hospital.
The attack at the heart of one of the world”s most visited cities comes as Turkey battles Kurdish militants in its southeast and Islamic State insurgents just across its southern borders in Syria and Iraq.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility.
Meanwhile
The Telegraph
reports that there is ”high probability” that Istanbul explosion was ISIL terror attack.
The Istanbul governor”s office said the authorities were investigating the type of explosive used and who might have been responsible. It said ten people were killed and 15 wounded but gave no further details.
