World press aghast at Istanbul blasts

There is shock and fear in the world press after Thursday's suicide bombings in Istanbul.

Many papers warn that terrorism appears to be gaining the upper hand, with some voicing concern that other major cities in Europe are also vulnerable to attack.

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Terrorist 'victory'

Al-Qaeda has the upper hand. Jihad is a malignant disease, but Europe is still asleep.
Commentary in Israel's Yedi'ot Aharonot

The Bush-Blair meeting was meant to mark the final victory over Iraq, but this victory slipped through their fingers. Saddam Hussein and Bin Laden rolled around with laughter and derision, rubbed their hands in glee and made the V sign. Perhaps they even raised a toast.
Commentary in Israel's Ma'ariv

The terrorists have declared war on Turkey and it looks as if they are winning for the moment.
Russia's Izvestiya

At present, the initiative is with the terrorists and they are intent on destabilising important countries in the region.
Commentary in Czech Republic's Lidove noviny

Attacking this city was not unlike attacking Turkey's heart and whether it's the British consulate that is bombed or synagogues that are attacked, it all achieves maximum effect in terms of propaganda.
China's Qingnian Bao

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Europe 'terrified'

Europe is terrified. It has realised that terrorists are crouching at the door.
Slovakia's SME

The blasts bring the war on terror up to the borders of Europe.
UK's The Times

The strict security measures all over Britain made Al-Qaeda choose an easy target, Istanbul. British security and foreign policy experts have warned, however, that it is only a matter of time before such atrocities arrive in Britain.
Palestinian Al-Quds

Bin Laden's infernal machines will one of these days target Berlin or Paris, just as they targeted New York and Istanbul. In this war, neutrality is not an option.
France's Liberation

Most of the Western world has not yet come to grips with the fact that it is in a bitter war that will last many years. Since the days of Adolf Hitler, the world has not witnessed such a big, alarming flood of arsenic propaganda like the one coming from the Islamic Arab world.
Commentary in Israel's Ma'ariv

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Islam 'innocent'

The unfortunate thing is that the majority of the suicide bombings in Istanbul, Riyadh, Casablanca, Bali and elsewhere have been linked to Islam despite the fact that it is innocent of such criminal acts.
Qatar's Al-Rayah

Whoever carries out terrorist killings does not deserve the term Islamic extremist. They may be extremists, but they do not represent Islam. Islam forbids killing someone with no reasonable grounds.
Commentary in Saudi Al-Riyadh

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Terrorism

The terrorists showed once more that their ability and will to strike is undiminished, and may well be increasing.
UK's The Guardian

Terrorism will remain a sword placed on everyone's necks. Terrorism only begets terrorism and most of the time its victims are the innocent.
UAE's Akhbar al-Arab

The bombings in Istanbul yesterday seemed like a declaration of war against Bush.
Lebanon's Al-Nahar

Islamic terrorism is the greatest, most dangerous threat to the world today. It subverts societies, sows fear and strife, and contains the danger of a global conflagration.
Germany's Sueddeutsche Zeitung

The attacks have struck a serious blow to the ambitions of the leaders of the global antiterrorist coalition.
Russia's Nezavisimaya gazeta

Terrorism is escalating. Yesterday's ghastly terrorist bomb in Istanbul serves to remind humanity of the callous nature harboured by some people who seem to have such scant regard for the sanctity of life.
Kenya's Times

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International response

With every terrorist attack, the world becomes more dangerous and insecure. The question remains, will the international community remain a helpless onlooker?
Qatar's Al-Watan

Blindly launching heavy-handed attacks in the war against terror may be effective for a while but it cannot cure terror's root cause.
China's Renmin Wang

The more brutal the enemy, the more important it becomes not just to hit back but to consider how to respond.
Germany's Berliner Zeitung

From Baghdad to Istanbul via Riyadh, the cancer is spreading and strikes, surgical or otherwise, will not be enough to eliminate it.
Swiss Le Temps

Terror is terror and cannot be justified but terror may demand different responses depending on its origins.
Austria's Der Standard

BBC Monitoring, based in Caversham in southern England, selects and translates information from radio, television, press, news agencies and the Internet from 150 countries in more than 70 languages.