The blast killed at least six people, injured 81 others and shattered a yearslong sense of calm in Turkey as its tourism industry tries to recover from the coronavirus pandemic.
ISTANBUL — A bomb attack struck a bustling pedestrian thoroughfare in central Istanbul on Sunday, killing at least six people, in what officials said could be a terrorist attack, and shattering a sense of calm as Turkey’s tourist industry works to recover from the pandemic.
The attack was the deadliest in Turkey in more than five years, and the authorities offered few details in the hours afterward other than to say they were investigating the possibility that the bomb had been detonated by a woman. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan vowed to punish those behind the blast, without accusing any specific group.
“Efforts to make Turkey and the Turkish nation surrender by terror will not reach their aim today, as they did not in the past,” Mr. Erdogan told reporters before flying to Indonesia for the Group of 20 summit.
The explosion shook the heart of one of Istanbul’s most popular districts, a short walk from Taksim Square, leaving bloodied passers-by strewn about the pavement and sending waves of visitors rushing from the area. By Sunday evening, Turkish officials had put the number of people wounded at 81, with two in critical condition.
The blast occurred in front of a clothing store on Istiklal Avenue, a broad pedestrian street lined with historic buildings, shops and restaurants and traversed by a red-and-white tram. The area is crowded day and night with Turks and tourists from around the world strolling, shopping, watching street musicians and buying roasted chestnuts and Turkish ice cream.
The avenue was even more crowded than usual on Sunday because one of Turkey’s premier soccer teams was scheduled to play nearby in the evening, drawing fans to the neighborhood.
Like many parts of Turkey where the economy relies on tourism, the area around Istiklal had suffered in recent years as travel bans and fears of coronavirus infection kept many tourists away. But the area rebounded this summer as the pandemic waned and the weak Turkish lira made Turkey an attractive tourist destination.
About 4:20 p.m. Sunday, a large boom shook the street and an orange fireball rose to the sky, according to videos shared on social media.
Ambulances with sirens blaring rushed to the area as security forces cordoned off the blast site. A police helicopter circled overhead.
“I first thought it was a natural gas explosion,” said Serhat Sen, a 30-year-old real estate commissioner, who was on his motorbike a little more than half a mile from the site.
“People were scared, crying, running away desperately,” Mr. Sen added. “I started trembling. If I had been in a bit of a hurry, I would have been there.”
The bombing broke a five-year stretch in which Turkey appeared to be moving past the deadly attacks that had struck its cities in previous years.