Vigilance the new normal for Irish on holiday

For the third time in 10 months, Islamic State (IS) terrorism has been brought close to home.

And with an increased focus by IS on popular tourism areas — from beaches to music venues to shopping districts — the threat is likely to mount.

The suicide bombing in Istanbul on Saturday came just six days after another bombing in the capital, Ankara, and a day after the dramatic arrest of Paris terror attack suspect Salah Abdeslam in Brussels.

The explosion on Istanbul’s main shopping street left four people dead — three Israeli (two dual Israeli-American) and one Iranian — and 36 people injured.

The injured included two Irish citizens, who suffered minor wounds.

Yesterday, Turkey’s interior minister identified the suicide bomber as Turkish national Mehmet Ozturk, who they established was a member of Daesh, the Arabic acronym for IS.

This attack followed last Sunday’s more deadly explosion at a bus stop in Ankara, which claimed 37 lives. That bombing was claimed by a breakaway Kurdish militant group.

The IS attack on Istanbul on Saturday comes after last January’s suicide bombing by IS in a historic tourist district in the city, killing 12 German visitors.

The attacks in Turkey highlight the danger to tourists, including Irish visitors, and those working in high-risk destinations.

It follows the multiple IS attacks in Paris last November, in which Irish couple Katie Healy and David Nolan survived the assault on the Bataclan music venue.

Some 89 people were murdered in that atrocity, in which Mr Nolan received a serious injury to his foot.

Last June, Laurence and Martina Hayes, along with Lorna Carty, were murdered on the beaches of Tunisia.

IS-inspired Seifeddine Rezgui took to Marhaba beach, in Sousse, armed with an assault rifle and grenades and killed 38 people.

The Department of Foreign Affairs has issued warnings for a number of key holiday spots in Europe.

In Turkey, the department said the terror threat “remains high” and anyone planning to travel there should exercise caution.

It said “vigilance” was required in areas popular with tourists, including Taksim Square in Istanbul and locations close to police stations “which may be targets for terrorist attacks”.

The department said that anyone planning to go to France should exercise “extreme caution”. It said a national state of emergency was declared after the multiple attacks in Paris.

The department said that the Belgian authorities state that a level 3 terrorist alert continues for the whole country and that people should exercise “increased vigilance”, especially in places with a high concentration of people.

The department said the threat in Spain was “considered to be high”, adding: “While there is a risk of indiscriminate attacks, targets could include areas frequented by tourists.”

It said the Spanish government increased the terror threat level from three (medium) to four (high), out of a five-point scale.

The department said the global risk of indiscriminate terrorist attacks “also applies to Germany” and attacks “could be against civilian targets, including places frequented by tourists and expatriates”.

In Britain, the department said the terror threat had been raised from “substantial” to “severe”, the second- highest alert level.

The department said this “suggests that an attack is highly likely” and that such indiscriminate attacks could be against civilian targets.