After Instanbul attack, Port Authority boosts airport patrols

Port Authority police have boosted patrols at Kennedy, LaGuardia and Newark Liberty airports in the wake of Tuesday’s apparent terror attack in Istanbul, officials said.

The additional “high-visibility” patrols will be equipped with tactical weapons, according to the Port Authority.

“The agency continues to monitor the situation in Turkey and is collaborating with federal, state and local law enforcement partners to include the FBI Joint Terrorism Task Force,” the authority said in a statement.

The patrols are in addition to the counterterrorism units placed at various Port Authority facilities following the shooting massacre at an Orlando nightclub earlier this month.

Suspected Islamic State group extremists hit the international terminal of Istanbul’s Ataturk airport Tuesday evening, killing dozens of people and wounding many others, Turkish officials said.

Justice Minister Bekir Bozdag said 31 people were killed in the attack, and another senior government official told The Associated Press fatalities could climb much higher.

All planes were being diverted to nearby airports, an official said. The United States has grounded all flights to and from Istanbul.

With AP