News / Turkey

Russia: Istanbul bombing highlights need for global action against terror

Tuesday, 12 January 2016 6:37 PM [ Last Update: Tuesday, 12 January 2016 6:38 PM ]

Turkish police officers are seen on duty after a deadly bomb attack in Istanbul on January 12, 2016. (AFP Photo)

Russia says the deadly bombing in Istanbul highlights the need for the international community to join forces to stem terrorism.

The deadly bomb attack in the Turkish city on Tuesday confirms the need for countries to urgently join forces to battle terrorism, Russia’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

It expressed Moscow’s “deep condolences to the families of those who died” in acts of terror, both in Iraq and Istanbul on Monday and Tuesday, respectively.

The bombing in central Istanbul on Tuesday killed at least 10 foreigners, mostly German tourists. More than a dozen other people were injured.

In Iraq, at least 45 people were killed and 50 others wounded in a hostage-taking attack and a series of bombings on Monday.

Those “cynical crimes… have once again demonstrated the inhumanity and brutality of international terrorism,” the Russian Foreign Ministry said.

The administration of Russian President Vladimir Putin has been pushing for an international coalition against terrorists operating in Syria and elsewhere, the statement said.

Russia launched its aerial campaign against the Takfiri Daesh terrorists in Syria on September 30, 2015, upon a request by the Damascus government.

Unlike the US-led coalition that claims to target Daesh positions in Syria, the effectiveness of which has been questioned, the Russian campaign has facilitated the battle against terror in the crisis-hit Arab country.