Turkish police cordon off the Blue Mosque area on January 12, 2016 after a blast in Istanbul’s tourist hub of Sultanahmet left 10 people dead.
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Several more have been injured, according to Turkish media.
A second police officer at the scene said the square was not densely packed at the time of the blast, but that small groups of tourists were wandering around.
A witness told a Reuters correspondent that there were body parts at the scene in Sultanahmet square, a major tourist attraction.
The explosion occurred in a park in the Sultanahmet district, which is a popular tourist destination, and home to the Sultan Ahmed Mosque (also called the Blue Mosque). More than 30 others were killed in a separate explosion nearr the Syrian border in July.
Prime minister Ahmet Davutoglu said IS was behind the suicide attack, adding that Turkey is determined to battle the militant group until it no longer “remains a threat” to the country or the world.
An explosion of unknown origin rocked the historic centre of Istanbul on Tuesday, causing casualties, reports said.
A government official said the explosion was believed to be “terror-linked”.
According to reports, the blast took place on Sultanahmet Square.
A spokeswoman for the Department of Foreign Affairs said no Irish people are now known to have been involved in the incident and the situation is being monitored.
ISIS has responded by singling out Turkey as a primary target, and a recent issue of its Dabiq magazine had a cover showing Erdogan alongside U.S. President Barack Obama.
And in October 2015, IS suicide bombs exploded outside Ankara’s main train station, killing 102 people.
But Turkey is also waging an all-out assault on the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) which has staged dozens of deadly attacks against members of the security forces in the southeast of the country.
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Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Numan Kurtulmus says the suicide bomber who carried out an attack in Istanbul’s historic neighborhood is a 28-year-old Syrian national.
