Istanbul Suicide Bombing Leaves At Least 10 Dead, ISIS Involvement Suspected (BREAKING, VIDEO, TWEETS)

At least 10 people were killed and 15 other injured in a suspected suicide bombing at Istanbul's popular Sultanahmet tourist square on Tuesday morning, Turkish media reported.

Istanbul's governor's office announced that the explosion occurred at 10:20 a.m. local time near popular tourist spots Sultan Ahmet Camii (Blue Mosque) and Ayasofya (Hagia Sofia).

"I've never heard such a loud explosion in my life. It was very violent. Just after the incident I saw shocked tourists falling to the ground," an eyewitness told Anadolu Agency.

The suicide bomber reportedly blew himself up near a group of tourists, local media said. He allegedly targeted a group of foreign tourists. Security agencies suspect involvement of the Islamic State, ISIS/ISIL or Daesh. However, there was no official confirmation regarding ISIS's role.

Turkish President Reccep Tayyip Erdogan condemned the deadly blast, noting that the attack was carried out by a Syrian suicide bomber, according to BBC.

Kurdish Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) leader Selahattin Demirtaş described the terror attack a brutal massacre. "We condemn the massacre in Sultanahmet. We will not stop following [the blast] so as not to let it be left in the dark and to reveal the ones responsible," he said in his condolence message, according to Dogan news agency.

Tags

Istanbul, ISIS, Turkey, ISIL