Three assailants Tuesday night carried out a gun and suicide bomb attack in Istanbul Ataturk Airport, with the death toll rising to 44 people on Thursday and injuring some 239 others. Terrorist groups like the Islamic State and PKK continually bring chaos to the country and its people, but so far this year, this incident has been the most violent. Without doubt, this most recent attack will further hurt Turkey’s wavering tourism industry, which as a major contributor to the nation’s economy, marks it as an attractive target for ISIS.
Ataturk is known to be 11th busiest airport in the world, bringing in 30 million visitors each year, which unfortunately has already seen a steep 23% decline as tourists choose to steer away of Turkey in fear for their safety. With 13 foreign nationals reported to be among the dead in the most recent attacks, Turkey can only expect it to plummet even more. Furthermore, knowing that they hold a stricter security system than most airports only makes it even more worrisome, as even the double security screenings in place still are not enough to curb terrorism. If such a catastrophic outcome can happen in an airport where travelers are checked before they enter the international terminal building, and after they go through passport control, it’s hard to imagine what additional measures they can take. Add to that the frustration of passengers over long lines for security measures that we now realize are insufficient in averting assaults such as this.
Additionally, although no group has yet claimed responsibility for this atrocity, CIA director John Brennan says in all likelihood, ISIS once again is to blame: "I think what they do is they carry out these attacks to gain the benefits from it in terms of sending a signal to our Turkish partners ... and at the same time not wanting to potentially maybe alienate some of those individuals inside of Turkey that they may still be trying to gain the support of." Turkish nationals who are angry at their own government prove to be especially valuable since they have easy access for conducting missions inside the borders. To the surprise of some officials, just five hours after cleaning up the carnage, the airport opened its doors to travelers. Although some have condemned this as contaminating evidence, the attempt at some type of normality may be a messsge to the terrorists that their efforts are in vain.
Eliminating the root of the problem, rather than trying to prevent this from taking place once again, is our best option. However, it is easier said than done. But how else would you stop people seemingly without fear and without conscience? Not only are they not afraid to die, they also readily volunteer to sacrifice themselves for a massacre of innocents. A massacre of people whom they know are fathers and mothers, husbands and wives, and sons and daughters that they know will never again be seen by their families hopelessly waiting at the doorsteps of their homes.
