Turkish Cop Who Took Down Istanbul Gunman Hailed a Hero
The police officer took the attacker down with one shot, officials said.
— -- A Turkish police officer who faced down and shot a machine gun-wielding terrorist moments before the attacker detonated a suicide bomb at Istanbul's Ataturk airport was hailed a hero by airline officials.
Chairman of Turkish Airlines Ilker Ayci visited the officer, identified as Yasin Durna, in the hospital today.
“This guy is a hero,” Ayci told members of the press after he visited Durna. “He stood by himself against the machine-gunned terrorist with his gun and took down the terrorist with the first shot.”
Durna was seriously injured in the attack, but he did not sustain any life-threatening injuries, Ayci said. During the gunfight, he didn't feel the bullets at first, Durna told Ayci. After shooting the terrorist down, Durna didn't realize the attacker had a suicide-bomb vest until he got closer, Ayci said.
"The terrorist was about to pull the trigger of the bomb at that moment, so he ran away immediately," Ayci said. "If he didn’t take him down, that could have been very terrible.”
The attack left 42 dead and 238 others injured, according to Istanbul Gov. Vasip Sahin. It is "highly possible" that the three attackers who carried out the deadly explosions were foreigners, Turkey's Interior Minister said today.
No one has claimed responsibility for the attack, but the Interior Minister said "all findings show it's ISIS."