At least four people have lost their lives and several others have been wounded in a suicide bombing in a major shopping and tourist district in central Istanbul earlier today.
Istanbul’s Governor confirmed four dead after an explosion hit a shopping district of Istanbul.
The explosion was in Istiklal Street, a wide boulevard closed to traffic that is lined with international stores and shopping centres.
A Reuters witness in the area saw police helicopters circling overhead and television footage showed people running from the area.
The explosion comes as Turkey is on edge following two recent suicide bomb attacks in the capital, Ankara.