One dead and four injured in shooting outside Israeli consulate in Istanbul

One person was killed and four were injured in a shooting incident near the Israeli ⁠consulate in Istanbul on Tuesday, authorities have said.

A gunfight erupted outside a building housing the Israeli Consulate in Istanbul on Tuesday, according to Turkey’s Haberturk broadcaster. Reuters video ​showed ⁠a police officer ‌pulling out a gun and taking cover ‌as gunshots resounded. ‌One person was seen covered in blood.

One attacker was killed, while two were injured at the scene, and two policemen were lightly wounded, Istanbul governor Davut Gul said. Initial reports said three were killed in the shooting incident.

The report said attackers were carrying long-barreled weapons. The area surrounding the building was quickly sealed off.

There was no immediate information on the identity of the attackers or what their motives may have been.

Istanbul’s chief public prosecutor’s office immediately opened an investigation into the incident, Turkey’s justice minister Akın Gürlek said in a statement shortly after the incident.

“Upon the reports of gunfire sounds in the vicinity of the Israeli Consulate located in the Beşiktaş district of Istanbul, the Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office has immediately initiated an investigation,” the statement read on X.

Three prosecutors have been assigned to investigate the incident, he added.

“Within the scope of the investigation, one deputy chief public prosecutor and two public prosecutors have been assigned; our public prosecutors have promptly arrived at the scene and begun examinations.

He continued: “Under the coordination of our Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office, in collaboration with relevant law enforcement units, the work is ongoing for the purpose of fully elucidating the incident, and the investigation is being conducted meticulously and in a multifaceted manner.”

No Israeli diplomats were believed to be stationed in Turkey at that time, either at the ‌consulate ​in ‌Istanbul or ⁠the embassy in ⁠Ankara. The consulate occupies one or two floors inside the high-rise building, according to Haberturk.

This is a breaking news story. More to follow.