“This attack also shows us the necessity to confront terrorism in a resolute way”, Merkel said, adding that the government was in close contact with Turkey.
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Kurtulmus was speaking to reporters in Ankara following a high-level security meeting hastily called to discuss the attack.
Reporting on the nationality of some of the victims, Hurriyet Daily News reports, “Six German citizens, one Norwegian and one Peruvian were among the… wounded people rushed to the Haseki Hospital, Doğan News Agency has reported”. Police cordoned off the area to shocked passers-by and tourists and the nearby tram service has been halted. The prime minister has said all those killed were foreign nationals; Germany has confirmed that eight of its nationals were among the dead.
Sultanahmet Square accommodates a number of Istanbul tourist attractions – Hagia Sophia, the Blue Mosque and the Hippodrome. Kurdish militants and left-wing groups are active in Turkey.
“Unfortunately… there are fatalities, including locals and foreigners. They attacked Sultanahmet to grab attention because this is what the world thinks of when it thinks of Turkey”, said Kursat Yilmaz, who has operated tours for 25 years from an office by the square. The group of 20 tourists is believed to have been followed by terrorists upon their arrival in Istanbul.
John Bass, the US ambassador to Turkey, tweeted: “Closely following reports of an explosion in Sultanahmet”.
The explosion was strong enough to be heard in other areas of the city, Hurriyet reported.
The cause of the explosion is being investigated, but State-run TRT television says it was likely caused by a suicide bomber.
Istanbul has suffered relatively small scale attacks – at least one blamed on a left wing political group.
“At least eight Germans” are among the dead, Chancellor Angela Merkel said in Berlin, saying it was not clear if that would be the final figure. The blast comes just over a year after a female suicide bomber blew herself up at a police station for tourists off the same square, killing one officer and wounding another.
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And past year, Turkey became a more active participant in U.S.-led assaults on the Islamic State, including opening its bases to American aircraft that carry out raids in Syria.
