Horrific moment plain clothes police officer is shot at point blank range by ISIS suicide bomber during Istanbul airport massacre
- WARNING: GRAPHIC CONTENT
- Footage shows an undercover policeman approach a man in a black jacket
- Plain clothes officer then collapses to floor in agony holding his stomach
- Jihadist then takes aim and shoots the policeman while he is on the ground
CCTV footage captures the horrific moment a plain clothes police officer was shot at point blank range by an ISIS suicide bomber during the Istanbul airport massacr
Footage shows an undercover policeman approach a man in a black jacket walking through Ataturk airport before collapsing to the floor in agony
Three suicide bombers went on a coordinated rampage through the terminal on Tuesday night killing 43 people - 19 of them foreigners - and injuring more than 300.
The latest CCTV footage, obtained by Turkish broadcaster Haberturk, was taken from a camera near elevators at the airport moments before the main attack got underway.
The officer is believed to have approached the bomber because he was suspicious about him wearing a raincoat in summer.
They exchange words before footage shows the policeman rolling around on the floor.
After seeing that the officer was not dead, the gunman reportedly extended his arm and shot at his victim again.
An extended version of the CCTV video then shows the jihadist taking aim at the officer while he is writhing on the ground before firing again
After seeing that the officer was not dead, the gunman reportedly extended his arm and shot at his victim again. He then steps over the officer and puts the gun away before getting into a lift
He then steps over the officer and puts the gun away before getting into a lift.
According to the Mirror, the condition of the policeman is not yet known.
Authorities have identified the bombers as a Russian, an Uzbek and a Kyrgyz national.
Turkey has been plunged into mourning over the carnage at Ataturk airport, the deadliest of several attacks to strike Turkey's biggest city this year.
Police carried out more than a dozen raids across Istanbul early Thursday, arresting 13 people including four foreigners, Interior Minister Efkan Ala said.
Turkey has suffered a string of deadly attacks in the past year blamed on either IS or Kurdish rebels, and the airport attack comes just at the start of the crucial summer tourist season.
Ala told reporters late Wednesday there was an ongoing 'serious and comprehensive investigation' into who was behind the attack.
Using another name for IS, he said: 'First signs point to Daesh, but it's not certain yet.'
CIA director John Brennan said the attack, which has sparked international condemnation, bore the 'hallmark' of the jihadist group.
Today it emerged that undercover officers unwittingly tried to stop one of the Istanbul terrorists in his tracks just moments before the cell began their murderous rampage - causing the panicked jihadi to open fire early.
Text messages between the officer and his colleague reveal how he spotted the man wearing inappropriate winter clothing at Ataturk Airport on Tuesday night and deciding to investigate.
The three smiling suicide bombers are seen walking calmly together towards the airport, wearing heavy clothes with one carrying a bag
A woman cries as people start to gather at the airport on Thursday afternoon for a memorial service to remember those who lost their lives
But the decision proved to be almost fatal: his intervention caused the terrorist to begin the attack early, with his first target being the officer.
According to Hurriyet, the officer texted his friend about the man after deciding he looked suspicious.
'He is walking around with a coat in this weather,' he wrote, adding: 'Brother, he looks like a robber, shall we follow him?'
His friend encourages him, and the men call on back up.
Unaware of the danger, they asked for ID, and the man bent down, pretending to look for it. When he stood back up, he was holding a gun, which he fires at the officers three time.
The terrorist then ran downstairs, outside in front of international arrivals, where - near the taxi rank - he explodes at exactly 9.51pm.
The officer, who is expecting his first child with his wife, is now fighting for his life in hospital.
The story emerged at the same time as a still from airport CCTV showing one of the terrorists shooting a plain clothes policeman at point-blank range.
An image of the three of them walking into the airport together has also been made public, while Turkish officials have revealed the men came from Russia, Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan. It is thought there were eight other people involved in the terror plot.
This is the first clear picture of the man Turkish media are claiming is one of the men who attacked the airport on Tuesday
A second suicide bomber can be seen here, making his way through the terminal with what appears to be a gun
One of the three terrorists that struck at Turkey's Ataturk Airport wields an AK-47 as he carries out his killing spree (left), while a man carries a wounded boy away from the airport (right)
The attack came just a day after the Kremlin revealed it had received a letter of apology from president Recep Tayyip Erdogan after Turkey downed one of Russia's jets over Syria earlier this year.
The CCTV image - which appears to show the killers grinning as they walk towards the building - matches those release yesterday, one of which shows the man in the centre walking alone into the airport, alongside an unsuspecting pilot.
The man at the back was seen on other CCTV, gun in hand - apparently shooting indiscriminately at his innocent victims.
In another clip, one of the men was seen being shot by a policeman, falling to the floor before igniting his explosives.
A newly released video of the attack shows people fleeing in front of a gunman, clearing what appears to be the check in area before he appears in shot.
An aerial view of the airport shows where the suicide bombers are believed to have detonated their explosives, close to the entrance to the international arrivals terminal
The man then runs around a bit, apparently shooting at something, before dropping his gun.
He picks it up, and then runs off back to where he has come from. It is unclear which bomber he was.
By the time the final bomber detonated his suicide vest, the terrorists had killed dozens of people and injured hundreds. On Thursday, the death toll rose to 43.
The exact identities of the men remains unclear, but speaking today, an official said 'extensive soft-tissue' damage had complicated efforts to identify the attackers.
'A medical team is working around the clock to conclude the identification process,' he told journalists.
As they continue to try to establish exactly who they were, Turkish police located an alleged terrorist hideout said to have been used by the cell to plot the airport atrocity.
A woman who lives in the same apartment building said: 'There were strange smells.
'It was like a gas and it never went. We heard clicking sounds and we think whey were making bomb.'
Three bombers used this flat - which had a steel door - in the Fatih suburb in the European part of Istanbul.
Bodies lie on the pavement outside Istanbul's international airport after explosions and gunfire shook the terminal
People who had just arrived at the airport in Istanbul after the blasts were pictured running as they tried to flee the scene
According to reports, they paid a three month rent upfront for the apartment in the Ardic apartment building, where they kept the curtains and windows shut at all times - using air conditioning to keep cool during the Turkish summer.
One woman claimed she went to see the local authorities amid suspicions over the new identities.
She went to see a local official 'and asked him if he knew who they are.
'And the muhtar told me not to worry: 'We know everything'.'
Experts have described the attack as being planned with precision which was akin to that of 'special forces'.
Writing in the Daily Beast, Clive Irving noted: 'It was carried out in a way that suggests the kind of advance intelligence, careful study of a target, and cool execution that would normally be practised by Western special forces.'
Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim said on Wednesday that one of the attackers blew himself up outside, giving the other two the opportunity to get inside the building.
He said: 'When the terrorists couldn't pass the regular security system, when they couldn't pass the scanners, police and security controls, they returned and took out their weapons out of their suitcases and opened fire at random at the security check.
'One blew himself up outside and the other two took advantage of the panic created during the shoot out and got inside and blew themselves up.'
ISIS have yet to claim responsibility for the attack, but Turkish officials say it carries all the hallmarks of the terror group - and is similar to the attack in Brussels.
BBC security correspondent Frank Gardner said: 'The lack of any immediate claim for this attack by so-called Islamic State is not surprising..(but) all the signs point towards them being the culprits.'
He said Turkey had been targeted in the past by other groups, notably Kurdish separatists, but they tended to aim at Turkish policemen and soldiers, rather than civilians or foreigners.
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