Istanbul bombers were Russian, Uzbek, Kyrgyz nationals - Turkey govt official, media

Three suspected Islamic State suicide bombers who killed 42 people in a gun and bomb attack at Istanbul airport this week were from Russia, Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan, Reuters reports with reference to a Turkish government official said on Thursday.

The official gave no further details beyond confirming the attackers’ nationalities and declined to be named because details of the investigation have not yet been released. Investigators had been struggling to identify the bombers from their limited remains, officials said earlier on June 30.

Turkish police detained 13 people, three of them foreigners, in raids across Istanbul in connection with Tuesday night’s attack. The authorities believe that the ‘Islamic State’ is to blame for the attack

The Yeni Safak newspaper said the Russian bomber was from Dagestan but did not reveal its source. According to it, the man’s name is Akhmed Chatayev and he is of Chechen origin. Chatayev is identified on a United Nations sanctions list as a leader in Islamic State responsible for training Russian-speaking militants, and as wanted by Russian authorities.

The Hurriyet newspaper named one of the attackers as Osman Vadinov, also Chechen, and said he had come from Raqqa, the heart of Islamic State-controlled territory in Syria.

Turkish officials did not confirm to Reuters that either Chatayev or Vadinov were part of the investigation.

Belsat.eu, via reuters.com