What We Know About the Victims of the Istanbul Airport Attack
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The attack on the Istanbul airport killed at least 44 people from across the globe. They had varied ethnic backgrounds and worked as teachers, airport employees, translators, and caterers. Some victims were parents and some victims were young children, according to the Associated Press.
The White House called the attack an assault on global unity. "Ataturk International Airport in Turkey, like Brussels Airport which was attacked earlier this year, is a symbol of international connections and ties that bind us together," wrote White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest.
These are some of the victims of Tuesday's attack on Ataturk International Airport in Turkey:
Rayan Shraim, 3
Sondos Shraim, Rayan's mother (age unknown)
Sondos Shraim and her 3-year-old son Rayan died from injuries in the attacks. They were from Palestine and had traveled to Turkey for a vacation during Ramadan. Shraim's husband was also injured, according to the Associated Press.
Ozgul Ide, 21
Merve Yigit, 22
Merve Yigit was a caterer at the airport. She died from injuries she received after one of the bombs went off. She was a public relations student, according to the Associated Press.
Abrorjon Ustabayev, 22
Abrorjon Ustabayev was from Uzbekistan but frequently traveled to Turkey for business. When he died in the attacks, he had $12,000 worth of textiles with him.
Serkan Turk, 24
A Facebook post from United World Wrestling indicates Serkan Turk was a wrestler and physical education teacher. He went to pick up his mother from the Istanbul airport on Tuesday. After the first explosion, Turk ran to help victims, but the second explosion killed him. He graduated from Toksoz of Trakya University last year, according to the Associated Press.
Abdulhekim Bugda, 24
Muhammed Eymen Demirci, 25
Caglayan Col, 26
Caglayan Col was killed while waiting for the bus to go home. He had worked at Ataturk for two years.
Gülşen Bahadir, 28
Gülşen Bahadir was an airport employee. She wrote a lengthy post on her Facebook page about nonviolence just days before she was shot and killed.
The BBC translated part of it.
"I have never got into a war in my life, never. Not because I'm weak but because I chose so. My choice was resisting. Because I know that war is futile. There would be no winners in any war, only losers. I'm resisting against the injustices of the state. I'm only asking for the deserved welfare of the people. I resist against evil."
Nisreen Melhim, 28
Nisreen Melhim worked in Saudi Arabia with her husband. They stopped in Turkey for a few days on their way to vacation at home in Palestine for Ramadan. Her husband found her bleeding after one of the explosions and she later died in the hospital.
Umut Sakaroglu, 31
Umut Sakaroglu, a customs officer, died while shooting back at the attackers. He was killed when one of them detonated his suicide vest.
Yusuf Haznedaroglu, 32
Yusuf Haznedaroglu died from his injuries in the hospital. He was an airport employee and was waiting for the bus to go home, according to the Associated Press. He and his fiancee, Nilsu Ozmeric, were two weeks away from their wedding day.
Adem Kurt, 32
Adem Kurt worked at the airport for nearly two years before he died in the attacks. He went home every weekend to visit with his family. They had a service in front of the family home for Kurt before burying him in a mosque on Wednesday, Associated Press reports.
Ertan An, 39
Ertan An was a translator who came to the airport to send off a group of tourists.
Ercan Sebat, 41
Larisa Tsybakova, 46
Mustafa Biyikli, 51
Ferhat Akkaya (age unknown)
Murat Gulluce (age unknown)
Col. Fathi Bayoudth (age unknown)
Col. Fathi Bayoudth was meeting his son, who had defected from the Islamic State, when he was killed. They were supposed to go back home to Tunisia together. The son was placed in police custody, according to the Associated Press.
