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Two powerful explosions — including a possible car bomb — killed 29 people and wounded 166 others Saturday outside a soccer stadium in central Istanbul, Turkey's Interior minister said.
The dead included 27 police officers, as well as two civilians, Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu said at a news conference early Sunday.
Soylu said 10 people had been arrested in connection with the attacks.
“We have once again witnessed tonight in Istanbul the ugly face of terror which tramples on every value and decency,” Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said earlier in a statement.
The private NTV channel reported the target of the attack outside newly built Besiktas Stadium was a bus used by riot police.
“It is thought to be a car bomb at a point where our special forces police were located, right after the match at the exit where Bursaspor fans exited, after the fans had left," Soylu said Saturday night, according to Turkey’s state-run Anadolu Agency.
The second blast appeared to have been caused by a suicide bomber, he said.
Police cordoned off the area amid the sound of gunfire as smoke rose from the scene. The blasts erupted after the home team Besiktas beat visitor Bursaspor 2-1 in the Turkish Super League.
The explosion has also been caught live on the cameras of BJK TV.
One of the blasts was thought to be a car bomb and the second appeared to have been caused by a suicide bomber. Witnesses also heard gunfire after the explosions.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack.
The U.S. Embassy in Turkey tweeted Sunday: "Our hearts and prayers are with the people of #Istanbul tonight. We condemn tonight's cowardly attack, and salute the courage of the Turkish people as we stand with them against terror."
Istanbul has witnessed bombings this year attributed by authorities to the Islamic State group or claimed by Kurdish militants.
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