Prime Minister Binali Yıldırım responded to the terrorist attack at Istanbul's Atatürk International Airport late on Tuesday, saying that Turkey is powerful and resolute to overcome terrorism.

Speaking to reporters, Yıldırım said the attack targeted innocent civilians and once again demonstrated that terrorism is a global threat.

"The most meaningful response in the fight against terrorism is the unity and solidarity of our citizens against this blameworthy incident."

Yıldırım said initial evidence points to DAESH as the responsible party for the attack. Asked whether an attacker may have escaped in the chaos, he refuted it, but stressed that security officers are considering all possibilities.

He explained that the terrorists came to the airport by taxi, and added that the timing of the attack was "meaningful," referring to Turkey's recent rapprochements with Russia and Israel.

Indicating that many of the victims of the attack were slightly injured, he added that "some foreign nationals were also injured," and called for the international community to cooperate with Turkey in the fight against terrorist organizations.

Yıldırım added: "Our airport reopened to flights at 2:20 a.m. and air traffic returned to normal."

Just a couple of hours before Yıldırım's statement, Justice Minister Bekir Bozdağ said that an attacker had opened fire with an AK-47 assault rifle at the international terminal before detonating a suicide bomb. Istanbul Governor Vasip Şahin said law enforcement believed three terrorists detonated suicide bombing vests up at the security entrance to the terminal after police fired at them.

The attack followed just two weeks after a car bomb hit a police vehicle in Istanbul's Vezneciler area. Seven police officers and four civilians were killed in that attack, and 36 were wounded.