AIRPORT SECURITY IN SPOTLIGHT AFTER ATTACK
Bombers in Istanbul prevented from killing more, prime minister says
A new security regimen at Ataturk airport helped disrupt the plans of three terrorists looking to penetrate deeper into the terminal and wreak more havoc, Turkey’s prime minister said Wednesday.
The attackers’ suicide bombs killed 42 people, but an encoun- ter with guards at the terminal’s doorway forced them to split up and set off the explosives earlier than planned.
The attack at the airport Tuesday wounded more than 230 people, but it could have been much worse. “When the terrorists couldn’t pass the regular security system, when they couldn’t pass the scanners, police and security controls, they returned and took out their weapons out of their suitcases and opened fire at random at the security check,” Prime Minister Binali Yildirim said.
The new approach of placing armed officers directly outside the facility came after bombings in Brussels at an airport and nearby subway station killed 32 people in March. Brussels’ airport was shuttered for weeks after suicide attackers detonated bombs
“The mood is very morose, it’s really just kind of down. The atmosphere just doesn’t feel normal at all.” Brian Degitz, teacher
at a check-in area. The explosions in Istanbul caused far less damage, and the airport reopened early Wednesday.
The Turkey attack should serve as a warning, CIA Director John Brennan said. “I’d be surprised if (the Islamic State) is not trying to carry out that kind of attack in the United States,” Brennan told Yahoo! News. “It’s not that difficult to actually construct and fabricate a suicide vest … so if you have a determined enemy and individuals who are not concerned about escape, that they are going into it with a sense that they are going to die, that really does complicate your strategy in terms of preventing attacks.”
Security experts have recommended that armed officers, such as police or National Guard members, be posted at terminal doors to confront suspicious people before they enter the building.
No group had claimed responsibility for the Istanbul assault, but authorities suspected the Islamic State.
The three attackers arrived at the lower-level arrivals hall; one went inside, opened fire, then detonated his explosives, an Interior Ministry official and another official told the Associated Press.
During the chaos, a second attacker went upstairs to departures and blew himself up. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly about the investigation.
The third man waited outside and detonated his explosives last as people flooded out of the airport, the officials said.
President Obama phoned Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Wednesday to express his condolences. He pledged to dismantle “organizations of hate,” saying the attack showed how little these “vicious organizations” have to offer.
The U.S. State Department advised Americans to be “situationally aware” if they’re in Turkey.
Thousands of weary travelers whose flights were canceled began returning to the airport — a major tourist transit point — at 2:20 a.m., when flights resumed. Debris littered the international hall amid chaotic scenes as travelers tried in vain to figure out when their flights would depart.
“Our flight is supposed to be on time, but right now, we don’t even have a gate number because the flights are just a mess,” Brian Degitz, 28, a teacher from the USA, said an hour before he was scheduled to board a flight home with his wife, Ilayda.
“There were a lot of flights canceled, so there are a lot of people who have been here all night,” Degitz said. “The mood is very morose, it’s really just kind of down. The atmosphere just doesn’t feel normal at all.”
World leaders condemned the attack Wednesday. In a public blessing at midday, Pope Francis said he was praying for the victims, their families “and the dear Turkish people.”
“May the Lord convert the hearts of the violent ones and support our efforts toward the path of peace,” he said.
“My thoughts are with the families of the victims, those injured and the people of Turkey,” said Jens Stoltenberg, NATO’s secretary-general. “There can be no justification for terrorism.”
“May the Lord convert the hearts of the violent ones and support our efforts toward the path of peace.” Pope Francis