Forty nine hostages who were seized by Islamic militants in Iraq have been freed and safely returned to Turkey, ending Turkey’s most serious hostage crisis, Turkish prime minister Ahmet Davutoglu said today.

A gunman who took a number of tourists hostage in a Turkish hotel has surrendered, according to reports.

A gunman armed with an assault rifle entered a five-star hotel in the centre of Istanbul today and took several tourists hostage after firing shots in the air, reports said.