Turks ache for victims as they search for answers
ISTANBUL — One man worked as a Turkish translator and was escorting tourists back to the airport. One woman, an airport worker, was looking forward to her wedding in 10 days. There were taxi drivers and a customs officer. And there was a Turkish couple who worked together, and died together, in the suicide attack Tuesday at Ataturk Airport that killed dozens of people and wounded more than 200.
As officials the death toll had risen to 42, details about the victims began trickling out. At least 23 were from Turkey.
The victims reflected the cosmopolitan and international character of Istanbul, whose airport is among the world’s busiest, a hub for tens of millions of passengers each year connecting to Europe, the Middle East, Africa and beyond. Among the victims were five Saudis, two Iraqis and one citizen each from China, Iran, Jordan, Tunisia, Ukraine and Uzbekistan, a Turkish official said.
A majority of the victims appeared to be Muslims, either Turks or visitors from Muslim countries.
Hours after the attack a limited number of flights resumed and workers continued clearing debris and replacing shattered windows at the airport. Unlike Brussels, where a terrorist attack in March closed the airport for days, Istanbul appeared determined to get back to business as usual. Cars streamed into the airport’s international terminal, where the attack occurred, almost like on a normal weekday.
Victims in Tuesday’s attack included at least 13 foreigners. The Istanbul governor’s office said more than 230 people were wounded and dozens remained in critical condition.
Among the dead was Muhammed Eymen Demirci, who had just landed a job on the airport’s ground services crew after more than a year of unemployment: “I got the job bro!” the 25-year-old texted a friend in May.
He died while waiting for a bus after his shift. A childhood friend who had helped Demirci get the job was devastated. “He was such a friendly person, a man who fought for his ideals,” Deniz Dogan said. “Now I wish he hadn’t gotten the job.”