Some 150 Russian Citizens Unable to Depart From Istanbul Airport to Moscow

About 150 Russian nationals cannot depart from the Ataturk Airport in Istanbul to Moscow following a coup attempt in Turkey, Russian Consul General Andrey Podelyshev said Saturday.

ANKARA (Sputnik) — Late on Friday, Turkish authorities said that an attempted coup took place in the country. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan urged Turkish citizens to take to streets, stating that the coup attempt was carried out by a small group within the military. Soon after the attempt, the airspace over the region of the Sea of Marmara in the north-western part of Turkey was reportedly closed for civil aviation and the Turkish Airlines company announced cancellation of all flights scheduled for Saturday.

"The registration has already been announced in 14:00 [local time, 11:00 GMT], but it has been unexpectedly interrupted. There are no more than 150 our citizens. Someone has already left to the hotel, someone is waiting in the airport. Taking into consideration that the airspace is still closed, the situation is unclear. We have been told in the Turkish Airlines company that they are ready to start flights as usual, but only after the authorities will provide them with takeoff clearance," Podelyshev told RIA Novosti.

The coup attempt in Turkey was suppressed by early Saturday, with Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim stating that all coup supporters were identified and would be apprehended as the country was returning to normal life. Over 180 people were killed and 1,470 were injured during the events, while nearly 3,000 people have already been detained, according to the prime minister.