Security tightened after Turkey resort bombings

Security has been tightened in Turkey’s holiday resorts after bomb blasts in Marmaris, Antalya and Istanbul killed at least three people and injured others.

In Marmaris three explosions on Sunday left up to 30 people hurt, including 10 British holidaymakers.

The main bomb went off in a local minibus in the centre of the resort at midnight local time with other devices in dustbins.

Five of the injured – a family – were clients of Jewel in the Crown Holidays.

Managing director Platon Loizou said a mother with her two sons, aged 7 and 6, and her partner with his daughter, 13, were being treated in hospital.

“The girl, Jennifer, was taken to another hospital but our overseas manager in Marmaris has now got her transfered to the same hospital.

“She, and the older boy were injured and the other son had small shrapnel wounds. The mother is in a lot of pain and the partner is in intensive care but not critical.”

The operator has 1,400 clients in Turkey but only two have asked to come home and eight have asked to be moved to unaffected resorts.

“We usually get around 200 bookings a day for Turkey but yesterday we had 10. We have been hit massively. We will now be consolidating our programme,” said Loizou.

“But the Foreign Office has been fantastic and we are handling the situation. Our main concern is the welfare of the family.”

Another bomb went off in Istanbul on the same day, injuring six people.

Yesterday (Monday) a third explosion went off in Antalya, killing three local people and leaving others injured.

The explosion happened close to restaurants in the centre of the city, but not in a main tourist area.

A Kurdish militant group is reported to have said it was behind Sunday’s blasts in Marmaris and Istanbul, but noone has claimed responsibility for the attack in Antalya.

On Monday night, Turkish police said they had arrested a man in Izmir after uncovering a plot to bomb the coastal town.

According to reports in the Turkish press, the man was from the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) separatist group.

The Foreign Office has not advised against travel to Turkey, but said there is a high threat from terrorism in Turkey and further attacks, including in tourist areas, could well occur.

It has set up a dedicated help line for worried relatives – 020 7008 0000.

ABTA said its members with customers in Marmaris and Antalya are keeping clients informed of advice from the UK and local police and government authorities.

By Bev Fearis