A video has emerged appearing to show the moment a bomb was detonated tonight in a Turkish airport, killing up to 50 people and injuring dozens more.
The Turkish Justice Minister Bekir Bozdag has confirmed that up to 50 people have been killed and 40 are injured following explosions and gunfire at Istanbul’s Ataturk international airport.
Reports suggest that two people blew themselves up at the airport while eye witnesses heard at least two explosions followed by gunfire.
The chilling video below shows the moment the explosion ripped through the airport.
The moment of the attack at the Istanbul airport. Horrific. pic.twitter.com/Npikwlloxk
— Mahir Zeynalov (@MahirZeynalov) June 28, 2016
Bekir Bozdag said that according to preliminary information, “a terrorist at the international terminal entrance first opened fire with a Kalashnikov and then blew himself up”.
Another official said two attackers detonated explosives at the entrance of the international terminal after police fired at them.
The official said he was citing information from the interior ministry. It was not immediately clear why his account of the number of attackers was different to the justice minister’s.
Foreign Office officials have said they are “urgently seeking further information”.
Defence Secretary Philip Hammond described himself as “shocked” and said “we stand ready to help” after r eports from Turkey suggested up to three attackers detonated the explosives at the entrance of the international terminal before breaching the X-ray security check and opening fire.
Police are believed to have returned fire in an attempt to minimise the number of casualties. The attack is thought to have been carried out by Islamic State (IS) radicals.
Prime Minister David Cameron described the terrorist attack as “hideous”.
Turkey has suffered several bombings in recent months linked to Kurdish or Islamic State militants.
The bombings included two in Istanbul targeting tourists – which the authorities have blamed on Islamic State.
The attacks have increased in scale and frequency, scaring off tourists and hurting the economy, which relies heavily on tourism revenues.