Several killed, scores injured as strong explosion rocks major square in central Istanbul

A strong explosion in a busy area at the heart of a busy pedestrian street in Turkey's port city of Istanbul has left several people dead and scores injured, according to the local governor, published videos and Turkish media.

The blast, reportedly caused by a bomb, occurred shortly after 4:00 pm (1300 GMT) on Sunday in the famous Istiklal shopping street in the Beyoglu district, which is popular with locals and tourists. The cause of the blast has not been made clear yet.

No group has so far claimed responsibility for the Istanbul explosion.

Soon after the attack, the governor of Istanbul, Ali Yerlikaya, said four people were killed and 38 others wounded in the explosion while other reports put the fatalities at a dozen with over a dozen injured.

Later in the day, Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan condemned the 'vile attack' in Istanbul, saying six people had died in the blast.

"Six people were killed - four of them were killed at the site, another two died in hospital. According to the latest information from the governor the number of injured is 53," he told a televised press conference.

"The relevant units of our state are working to find the perpetrators... behind this vile attack," Erdogan added.

The Turkish president noted that initial signs pointed to a 'terror' attack in Istanbul.

"It would be wrong to say this is undoubtedly a terrorist attack, but the initial developments and initial intelligence from my governor is that it smells like terrorism. Initial findings show (amidst) people fleeing and so on, a woman has played a role in this," he said.

"The attempt to take over Turkey and the Turkish nation through terrorism will not reach its goal today or tomorrow," Erdogan said, vowing that those who waged terrorism against the Turkish nation would fail.

Hours later, Turkey's Vice President Fuat Oktay said the attack is considered to be a terrorist act carried out by a woman.

He also updated the figure on the number of people injured in the attack, saying, "As of now, we have lost 6 people, 4 of whom were at the scene, and we have 81 injured, 2 of them seriously."

State broadcaster TRT and other media showed ambulances and police heading to the scene.

The nearby Kasimpasa police station said all crews were at the scene but gave no further details. The area has been evacuated by security forces.

Images shared on social media at the time of the explosion indicated it could be heard from far away and that there were also flames. A wide black crater is also visible on the images as well as several bodies on the ground nearby.

Local media said crime inspectors were on the scene and Anadolu reported that the Istanbul chief public prosecutor's office has launched an investigation into the blast.

Istiklal avenue was affected during a series of attacks targeting Istanbul in 2015-2016 claimed by the Daesh Takfiri terrorist group.

Turkey's RTUK regulator imposed a broadcast ban on coverage of the blast around an hour after it occurred.

"My condolences to those who lost their lives in the explosion on Istiklal Avenue," Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu said on Twitter.

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