The area is close to the Turkish city's Blue Mosque, and is popular with tourists.
Police secure the area after an explosion near the Sultanahmet mosque.
Murad Sezer / Reuters
At least 10 people have been reported killed by the Istanbul governor's office, according to the Associated Press.
The blast hit the city's Sultanahmet district — home to the famed Hagia Sophia and Blue Mosque, and the first stop for many tourists in Turkey.
Initial reports in the Turkish press called the explosion a terrorist attack. If true, it will deal a bracing blow to the country — and potentially its tourism economy. More than 12 million people visited Turkey last year.
Amid the spiral of civil war in neighboring Syria and a new surge in fighting in southern Turkey between the military and Kurdish insurgents, the country has descended deeper into violence. Kurdish militants, the left-wing terror group DHKP-C, and ISIS have all carried out attacks in Turkey over the last year.
Ambulances in Sultanahmet.
Anadolu Agency / Getty Images
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