Explosion Kills 1, Injures Another at Istanbul Airport

An explosion in Istanbul's Sabiha Gökçen International Airport Wednesday morning killed one person and wounded another. The explosion took place near a parked Pegasus Airlines aircraft at 2.15 AM, Ihlas News Agency reported. The cause of the explosion remains unknown.

"One of the airport cleaning staff, 30, suffered an injury in her head, and another, 30, in her hand," the company said in a statement. The first employee was taken to Marmara Research and Application Hospital in critical condition and succumbed to her injuries.

Pegasus Airlines said there were no passengers inside the bridge or the plane at the time of the incident, and the airport would continue its ordinary operation.

When the explosion blast was heard, there were reports of a "mortar attack" on social media. But Istanbul police have denied that rumor. Security forces in the airport have started an extensive investigation into the incident and taken security measures around Sabiha Gökçen.