Image via Shutterstock
British travellers have been urged to avoid a popular shopping area in Istanbul after a suicide bomb attack.
The Foreign and Commonwealth Office issued the alert following the explosion on Istiklal Street in the centre of the Turkey’s largest city.
At least four people were killed and 36 injured in the blast near a government building.
Three Israelis – two with Israeli-US nationality – and an Iranian died in the attack, while an Irish-Algerian family was among those injured.
One national each from Germany, Iceland, Dubai and Iran were also injured.
The FCO advised Britons to avoid the area and follow the instructions of Turkish security forces.
Turkey’s interior minister, Efken Ala, was reported as saying the suicide bomber belonged to Islamic State.
He announced a review of security measures in seven Turkish provinces following several attacks since July.
Saturday’s attack is the latest in a series of deadly attacks in the country.
An attack last Sunday in the capital, Ankara, killed 37 people. A Kurdish militant group claimed responsibility saying it was revenge for Turkish military operations against Kurds.
A bomb attack on a military convoy in Ankara killed 28 people last month.
In October 2015, more than 100 people were killed in a double-suicide bombing at a Kurdish peace rally in Ankara.