ISTANBUL, Turkey: While condemning another terrorist attack which this time ripped through Ataturk Airport in Istanbul, the World leaders reiterated their call for joint efforts to eradicate this menace.
Last night, three suicide bombers sprayed bullets at the Ataturk airport’s international terminal entrance before blowing themselves, causing deaths of at least 41 people including 13 foreigners and injuries to 239.
Though no group immediately claimed having been involved in the attack at Istanbul airport but the Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim said that early signs suggested the Islamic State (IS) group was behind the bombing.
“The evidence points to Daesh,” Yildirim told media representatives referring to the IS militant group based in Iraq and Syria.
The Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in his response called for a “joint fight” against terrorism.
“If states, as all humanity, fail to join forces and wage a joint fight against terrorist organisations, all the possibilities that we dread in our minds will come true one by one,” Erdogan said.
Condemning terrorist attack at Istanbul’s Ataturk Airport, the United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon expressed his deepest sympathy and condolences to the families of the victims and to the government and people of Turkey.
“The Secretary-General hopes that the perpetrators of this crime will be identified and brought to justice,” said a statement issued by Ban’s Spokesman.
The spokesperson said that the UN Chief stands firmly by Turkey as it confronts the threat of terrorism and stresses the need to intensify regional and international efforts to combat terrorism and violent extremism.
The United States also condemned the attack at Istanbul’s Ataturk airport, and pledged its “steadfast” support for Turkey.
“Ataturk International Airport, like Brussels Airport which was attacked earlier this year, is a symbol of international connections and the ties that bind us together,” White House spokesman Josh Earnest said in a statement.
“We remain steadfast in our support for Turkey, our NATO ally and partner, along with all of our friends and allies around the world, as we continue to confront the threat of terrorism.”
Pakistan also condemned multiple explosions and gunfire at Ataturk Airport.
“We offer our heartfelt sympathies and condolences to the bereaved families and to the brotherly people and government of Turkey. We also pray for the speediest and fullest recovery of those wounded in this despicable attack,” Pakistan’s Foreign Office Spokesman Muhammad Nafees Zakaria said in a statement issued on Wednesday.
“Pakistan reiterates its condemnation of terrorism in all forms and manifestations. Like always, we stand in strong solidarity with the fraternal people of Turkey in their fight against terrorism.”
The Spokesman said that there is no doubt that this scourge would be decisively defeated with Turkey’s iron will and unshakeable resolve.
Likewise, the Iranian Foreign Minister Muhammad Javad Zarif also condemned that attack and called for global unity in the war against terrorism.
“Terror rears its ugly head yet again in our friend & neighbor’s airport. Extremist violence is a global threat; we must confront it together,” he tweeted early on Wednesday.
The British Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond also released a statement saying he was “shocked by the attack in Istanbul,” adding that “thoughts are with those affected. We stand ready to help.”
