ISTANBUL (Staff Report) – At least eleven people died while another thirty six were left injured when an explosion struck central Istanbul’s Vezneciler district on Tuesday.
As many as seven of the dead belonged to Turkey’s Police Department.
According to CNN Turk, the blast took place near a bus stop in the early morning rush hour. The original target of the explosion was a police vehicle that was passing by the location.
İstanbul Vezneciler’de bomba yüklü araç patlatıldı. 5 yaralı olduğu söyleniyor. pic.twitter.com/Z4WfjxG5wc
— Ece Nil Candar (@EceNilCandar) June 7, 2016
İstanbul Vezneciler’de patlama yerine ait olduğu söylenen fotoğraflar pic.twitter.com/0X5aPEaEUi
— Farkındamısınız (@Farkindamisiniz) June 7, 2016
İstanbul Beyazıt’ta polise saldırı! Olay yerinden ilk görüntüler… https://t.co/mxVr3W7oOW pic.twitter.com/Nc5p4OGkWG
— Habertrue (@habertrue) June 7, 2016
#Vezneciler #beyazıt patlama son dakika @KucukkayaIsmail @ntv pic.twitter.com/nYRve2hcqy
— Engin ÖZER (@enginozer_tr) June 7, 2016
Rescue teams and law enforcement agencies rushed to the blast site immediately. The injured have been shifted to a nearby hospital but their condition has not yet been determined.
Initial investigations revealed that the devastation was caused by a car bomb, which could also have had a suicide attacker inside.
None of the terrorist groups has claimed responsibility for the attack, immediately.