Two explosions rocked Istanbul's Ataturk Airport Tuesday afternoon, killing at least 41 people and injuring 147 others, according to a Turkish official.
Istanbul's governor said the death toll had risen to 41 Wednesday morning.
The official said three attackers blew themselves up after police fired at them.
Quick Facts:
- 36 killed, 147 injured in explosions at Istanbul's Ataturk Airport
- Three attackers blew themselves up at the entrance to the international terminal
- Initial indications suggest Islamic State group is behind attack
- This is the 5th major attack on Turkey's biggest city this year
Turkey's state-run news agency quoted Bekir Bozdag as saying: "According to the information I was given, a terrorist at the international terminal entrance first opened fire with a Kalashnikov and then blew himself up."
The official said the attackers detonated the explosives at the entrance of the international terminal before entering the x-ray security check. %
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Prime Minister Binali Yildirim says the attackers arrived at the airport in a taxi. Asked whether a fourth attacker might have escaped, he says authorities have no such assessment but are considering every possibility.
Turkey’s Health Ministry says 49 ambulances were sent to the airport.
A senior government official says the death toll could climb much higher.
Turkish airports have security checks at both at the entrance of terminal buildings and then later before entry to departure gates.
A senior Turkish official says initial indications suggest Islamic State group is behind airport attack.
Turkey has suffered several bombings in recent months linked to Kurdish or Islamic State group militants.
This is the 5th major attack on Turkey’s biggest city this year. Earlier this month,a car bomb attack on a police bus has killed seven officers and four civilians in central Istanbul.
The bombings included two in Istanbul targeting tourists — which the authorities have blamed on the Islamic State group.
The attacks have increased in scale and frequency, scaring off tourists and hurting the economy, which relies heavily on tourism revenues.
Ataturk is the 11th largest airport worldwide, with 61.8 million total passengers in 2015.
[ [READ: Passengers arriving at Atlanta airport shocked, heartbroken to learn of attacks] ]
Atlanta's Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport released a statement after the bombings, saying, "We are monitoring the situation closely in Istanbul and we are in coordination with federal, state and local law enforcement. At this time, there is no reason to believe that Hartsfield-Jackson is in any imminent threat."
Americans in Turkey
Turkey one of the main European tourist destinations for Americans. New figures released Tuesday show that 181,298 U.S. tourists arrived in Turkey so far this year, nearly 60,000 arriving last month alone.
In 2013 - the last year for which full year figures available – 503,019 Americans visited Istanbul. Americans are the third biggest number of visitors of any nationality.
The State updated its travel warning for Turkey Monday, advising that foreign and U.S. tourists have been explicitly targeted by international and indigenous terrorist organizations – including explicitly “aviation services.”
Witnesses describe scene inside the airport
Hundreds of passengers are spilling out of Istanbul's Ataturk airport with their suitcases in hand or stacked onto trolleys after the two explosions.
Others are sitting on the grass, their bodies lit by the flashing lights of ambulances and police cars, which are the only kind of vehicles allowed to reach the airport.
Two South African tourists, Paul and Susie Roos from Cape Town, were at the airport and due to fly home at the time of the explosions Tuesday. They were shaken by what they witnessed.
Paul said: "We came up from the arrivals to the departures, up the escalator when we heard these shots going off." He added: "There was this guy going roaming around, he was dressed in black and he had a hand gun."
Twelve-year-old Hevin Zini had just arrived from Dusseldorf with her family and was in tears from the shock. She tells The Associated Press that there was blood on the ground and everything was blown up to bits.
South African Judy Favish, who spent two days in Istanbul as a layover on her way home from Dublin, had just checked in when she heard an explosion followed by gunfire and a loud bang.
She says she hid under the counter for some time.
Favish says passengers were ushered to a cafeteria at the basement level where they were kept for more than an hour before being allowed outside.
EU leaders condemn deadly attack
European Union leaders holding an unprecedented summit about Britain's departure from the bloc are condemning a deadly attack on Istanbul's Ataturk airport.
Belgian Prime Minister Charles Michel tweeted from a closed-door meeting Tuesday in Brussels, "Despicable terror attack. Stand together with people of Turkey."
Dalia Grybauskaite, president of Lithuania, wrote "Our thoughts are with the victims of the attacks at Istanbul airport. We condemn those atrocious acts of violence."
The 28 EU leaders are meeting for an exceptional summit at which Prime Minister David Cameron announced his country has voted to leave the EU.
They are also discussing migration via Turkey to the EU.