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Welcome, 77 artists, 40 different points of Attica welcomes you by singing Erotokritos an epic romance written at 1713 by Vitsentzos Kornaros

Wednesday, June 29, 2016

The Latest: Erdogan says Turkey will overcome terror groups

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan says his country will overcome terror groups, including Kurdish rebels and the Islamic State group, which have intensified their attacks. Speaking at a Ramadan fast-breaking dinner Wednesday Erdogan said the terror organizations were trying to impede Turkey's ambitions, including becoming one of the world's 10 strongest economies and building the world's largest airport. Turkey's state-run Anadolu news agency says the death toll from the triple suicide bombing at Istanbul's Ataturk Airport has risen to 42. An interior ministry official and another official said all three assailants arrived by taxi at the level of the arrivals hall terminal. The first assailant entered the terminal, opened fire and then blew himself up near the X-ray machines, according to the officials. Suicide attackers armed with guns and bombs killed 41 people and wounded hundreds Tuesday at Istanbul's busy Ataturk Airport. Earlier this month, Brennan told Congress that the U.S. battle against IS has not yet curbed the group's global reach and that they are expected to plot more attacks on the West and incite violence by lone wolves. Turkish authorities say they are increasingly convinced the Islamic State group was behind Tuesday's deadly attack on Istanbul's Ataturk Airport. Prime Minister Binali Yildirim said in a televised speech: "Our thought that it is Daesh (Islamic State) continues to gain weight." "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," he said Wednesday. Footage shot by a passenger at the arrivals terminal of Istanbul's Ataturk International Airport shows divider panels blown off their hinges, exposed electric circuits and dangling ceiling fixtures after gun-and-bomb attacks that killed 41 people and wounded hundreds. In the video after Tuesday night's attack, a Turkish fireman walks past the motionless body of a man lying face up, most of his right arm missing, near a Turkcell phone stand. Police and investigators carrying crackling radios examine the scene, where a few dazed passengers remain, weaving their way through scraps of debris littered over a bloodied floor. White House spokesman Josh Earnest says Obama also offered U.S. support and assistance in the investigation. Suicide attackers armed with guns and bombs killed 41 people and wounded hundreds Tuesday night at the busy Ataturk Airport. The world's largest body of Muslim-majority nations has condemned the terrorist attack on Istanbul's international airport that killed at least 41 people and wounded hundreds. Iyad Madani, the secretary general of the 57-nation Organization of Islamic Cooperation of which Turkey is a member, stressed his "absolute rejection" of this terrorist attack carried out during Ramadan, a spiritual month during which Muslims fast daily from dusk to dawn. Most victims of the attack, which Turkish officials believe was carried out by the extremist Islamic State group, appear to be Muslim. Saudi Arabia's Embassy in Turkey says six Saudi citizens were killed in the attack on Istanbul's Ataturk Airport, raising the death toll from an earlier report. The Saudi government says it "condemns and rejects the terrorist attack", which has been blamed on the Islamic State group. Saudi Arabia's state-owned news channel says four Saudi citizens were among the 41 people killed in the attack on Istanbul's Ataturk Airport. The kingdom, which has close ties with Turkey's government and is also a strong backer of Sunni rebels trying to oust Syria's President Bashar Assad, says it "condemns and rejects the terrorist attack", which has been blamed on the Islamic State group. Russian President Vladimir Putin says his telephone call to Turkey's leader both expressed condolences for the Istanbul airport bombing, but also started a process of improving relations with the country. Putin told his cabinet that in the beginning of his Wednesday call with Erdogan, "I of course expressed the condolences to the president of the country and all the Turkish people in connection with the terrorist act." Israel's president has told his Turkish counterpart that their countries' new reconciliation pact will help with joint efforts to combat attacks like the one at Istanbul airport. In a statement released to media Wednesday, the ministry says "we offer our heartfelt sympathies and condolences to the bereaved families and to the brotherly people and government of Turkey" and that Pakistan reiterates its condemnation of terrorism "in all forms and manifestations". The Palestinian ambassador to Turkey says a Palestinian woman was killed in the blasts at Istanbul's Ataturk Airport and six Palestinians were injured, including a 17-year-old girl from the Gaza Strip who suffered critical injuries. The Istanbul Governor's Office says 41 people have been killed in the deadly suicide bombing attack in Istanbul's Ataturk airport blamed on the Islamic State group. A statement on the governor's website says 37 of the victims have been identified, including 10 foreign nationals and three people with dual citizenship. A Turkish official who spoke on condition of anonymity in line with government protocol says the death toll does not include three suicide bombers who died. Following a statement in Moscow Putin is expected to offer his condolences in the telephone call with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Wednesday, their first conversation in seven months after Russia froze its ties with Turkey in response to Turkey shooting down its military jet. Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Wednesday that the attacks at the Ataturk airport are "just another reminder of the importance of joint efforts to fight our common threat — terrorism." Greece's Foreign Ministry has expressed "rage and revulsion" over the attacks at Istanbul airport, condemning the suicide bomb attacks that claimed the lives of at least 36 people. The Foreign Ministry said in a statement Wednesday that a Greek consular team had gone to the airport immediately after the blasts to provide assistance to Greek citizens to ensure they were transported safely to hotels in the city, and the Greek Consulate in Istanbul was working to help repatriate citizens. Turkey's Prime Minister Binali Yildirim told reporters that air traffic returned to normal and "Our airport has been opened to flights and departures from 02:20 (local time) on," in a press statement at the airport early Wednesday morning. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has released a statement condemning the attack on Istanbul's Ataturk airport, which took place during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan. Turkey's NTV television is quoting Istanbul's governor as saying 28 people were killed in the attack at the city's airport and some 60 people wounded. 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.


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