Gunman killed, two wounded in police shootout outside Israeli consulate in Istanbul

A GUNMAN WAS killed and two others wounded in a shootout today with police outside the Israeli consulate in Istanbul, the local governor said, adding that two officers were lightly wounded.

Governor Davut Gul confirmed the killing of one of the assailants during the attack that took place around 12:15 pm local time.

It was not immediately clear if the intended target was the Israeli consulate. No Israeli diplomats “are currently on Turkish soil”, a source familiar with the matter told AFP.

Israeli diplomatic missions had been evacuated “not only in Turkey but throughout the region for security reasons” shortly after the October 7, 2023 attacks by the Palestinian group Hamas on Israeli soil.

Authorities have identified the assailants and Turkish interior ministry said the gunman who was killed ”had connections with a terrorist group that exploits religion”.

Interior Minister Mustafa Ciftci said they arrived in Istanbul by a rental vehicle from Izmit and one of the assailants was affiliated with an “organisation that exploits the region”.

Turkish officials would not immediately reveal the group the attacker was linked to but Turkish media said it could be Islamic State group, whose members clashed with Turkish police in Yalova — which lies on the shores of the Sea of Marmara about 90 kilometres (55 miles) southeast of Istanbul.

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Dressed in camouflage

IS militants opened fire on police in Yalova in December, killing three officers and wounding nine others.

Turkish police have stepped up nationwide raids against IS militants, rounding up 125 suspects shortly after that attack.

One of the two assailants in Tuesday’s shootout– who are brothers — has a drug record, the interior minister said.

Turkish media reported that the three suspects were armed with long guns, dressed in camouflage, and carrying backpacks.

A large police presence was deployed in front of the consulate, located in the Levent business district on the European side of Istanbul, AFP journalists witnessed.

They also saw bloodstains on the ground in an adjacent parking lot.

Footage broadcast by private NTV television showed police officers opening fire near a busy thoroughfare, as well as an injured person being carried away on a stretcher.

An investigation has been launched by the Istanbul public prosecutor’s office, Justice Minister Akin Gurlek said on X.