attack at Istanbul’s main airport- Ataturk International

At least 41 people have been killed in a gun and suicide bomb attack at Istanbul’s main airport, Ataturk International.

Assailants believed to be tied to Islamic State are reported to have opened fire outside the airport’s main terminal building on Tuesday, before a series of bombs were detonated. At least 90 other people were injured.

Amazingly however, Ataurk Airport as already reopened, and Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim was reported saying that air traffic is back to normal.

Turkish Airlines said in a statement on Wednesday that it is “closely monitoring the incident… and is in touch with all appropriate authorities”. Passengers due to fly to Istanbul today are advised to check with their airline.

The incident comes six months after a bomb killed one person at Istanbul’s second airport, Sabiha Gokcen, and just three months after IS militants attacked Brussels Airport. The Sabiha Gokcen blast was claimed by Kurdish militants.

Ataturk was the 11th busiest airport in the world in 2015, according to data from Airports Council International (ACI), handling a total of 61.8 million passengers