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Syrian suicide bomber suspected to be behind Istanbul blast - Turkish president

Turkey

Turkish president Tayyip Erdogan has announced the suspicion of a Syrian suicide bomber to be behind the Istanbul attack on Tuesday that killed both foreigners and Turkish nationals.

“I strongly condemn the terror incident in Istanbul’s Sultanahmet District, assessed to be an attack by a suicide bomber with Syrian origins,” Erdogan told a lunch for Turkish ambassadors in Ankara, in a speech broadcast live on television.

Ten people died and fifteen others wounded after a large explosion hit Sultanahmet square in central Istanbul on Tuesday, official statement from Istanbul governor’s office said.

BREAKING: Turkish TV show flames n smoke after explosion in Istanbul. Unconfirmed reports of suicide attack #turkey pic.twitter.com/8iZqSJIz2W

— Michel Santos (@Cibereporter) January 12, 2016

Investigations were being conducted into the type of explosive which caused the blast and those responsible, the governor’s office statement added.

The blast may have been caused by a suicide bomber, Turkey’s Haberturk television said, without citing its sources.

The blast took place in Istanbul’s historic Sultanahmet square, a major tourist attraction in Turkey’s most populous city.

Ambulances are rushing wounded people to the hospital for treatment.

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