Hristo Petkov, plenipotentiary minister in Bulgaria's General Consulate in Istanbul, talked to novinite.com Editor-in-Chief Milena Hristova

Q: The blasts that rocked Istanbul exploded in the area of the Bulgarian consulate complex. Can you tell us something more about this?

A: The first blast exploded about 11 o'clock some 1000-1200 meters off the building of the Bulgarian consulate and shortly afterwards a cloud of smoke rose in the sky. Five minutes later a second explosion was heard, some 3-4 kilometres away from the consulate. That was a very strong blast and the smoke rose high above the centre of the city. The blasts not only jolted but were also deafening. The buildings of the consulate complex are not damaged.

Q: Do you have information about Bulgarian nationals being among the casualties of the attacks?

A: We received information about a Bulgarian man being slightly wounded in the blasts. After being bandaged he left the hospital. The man is believed to have been in the area of the first blast. He has not contacted the Bulgarian consulate so far.

Q: What is the atmosphere in Istanbul?

A: I would not say that the citizens of Istanbul are in panic, but there is certainly nervousness in the air in view of the coming holidays - the biggest Muslim holiday is due next week. The biggest shopping centres in Istanbul were emptied out and most of them were closed today. Security measures are being tightened in restaurants, hotels, official buildings. I expect that the checks of in-coming and out-going people and arms will be even stricter from now on.

Q: The death of Roger Short, Consul General in Istanbul and former UK ambassador to Sofia, was reported after initially being announced missing....

A: The death of Roger Short was reported by local TV channels at 3 o'clock and it has not been refuted so far. I am inclined to think that he is among the victims of the blast.

Q: A man called the semiofficial Anatolia news agency claiming that Al-Qaida and the Turkish Islamic militant group IBDA-C jointly claimed responsibility for Thursday's attacks. Do experts in Turkey consider this credible?

A: Right after the explosions analysts commented that the character of the blasts - gases and smells - look similar to Saturday's suicide bombings.

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