ANKARA (Sputnik) — The organizers of explosions in the center of Istanbul, in which up to 70 people were affected, aimed for a maximum number of victims, Erdogan said Sunday.
“Tonight we have become witnesses of heinous face of terror. It is clear that the aim of the terrorist attack, which had occurred right after the Besiktas – Bursaspor match, was the maximum number of casualties. Unfortunately, it resulted in deaths and injuries,” Erdogan said in a statement.
Earlier in the day, Turkish Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu said that the blasts took place late on Saturday at 22:30 local time [7:30 pm GMT] in the central Besiktas district of the city. They occurred near the Vodafone Arena over an hour after a football match concluded at the stadium.
According to the minister, one of the blasts was allegedly carried out by a suicide bomber.
