Turkish Authorities Suspect Foreigners Behind Istanbul Airport Attack

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — A total of 36 people have been confirmed killed in the gun and bomb attack and over 140 sustained injuries.

Several suicide blasts hit the entrance, exit and a parking lot of the airport's international terminal at about 10 p.m. local time (19:00 GMT).

Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim said that three suicide bombers participated in the attack. Initial indications suggest that Daesh, outlawed in Russia, is responsible for the terrorist attack, though the investigation is still underway, Yildirim said at a press conference Wednesday.

Following the blasts, the Istanbul airport was totally evacuated and closed. Hundreds of flights were canceled. However, Yildirim, who attended the scene of events, said later that the airport had resumed its air traffic in a normal mode. Russia’s flagship airline Aeroflot canceled flights to and from Istanbul's Ataturk international airport on Wednesday.

According to the Russian Embassy in Turkey, a Russian national was wounded in the blast. The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry said that a Ukrainian national was killed in the attack and another one was injured.