One attacker was killed and two others were wounded in a gun battle with police outside the building housing Israel’s consulate in Istanbul on Tuesday, in what Turkish and Israeli officials described as a terrorist attack.
The assailants, armed with automatic rifles and handguns, opened fire near the consulate in Istanbul’s Levent business district, according to Turkish authorities and Reuters video from the scene. Two police officers were lightly injured in the exchange.
Turkish authorities said the attackers had arrived from Izmit, about 100 km east of Istanbul, in a rental car, and that one of them had links to a group that “exploits religion,” in an apparent reference to a jihadist organization. Turkish officials later said the gunman who was killed had connections to a terrorist group.
It was not immediately clear whether the intended target was the Israeli consulate itself. No Israeli diplomats were present in the building at the time, after Israeli diplomatic staff left Turkey in late 2023 amid tensions tied to the Gaza war.
Israel’s Foreign Ministry said it appreciated the swift response of Turkish security forces, while Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan condemned what he called a “treacherous attack” and said Turkey would not allow provocations to damage its security climate. Justice Minister Akin Gurlek said an investigation had been launched.
The shooting comes at a highly sensitive moment for Turkey and the wider region, as war involving the United States, Israel and Iran has intensified security concerns and raised fears that regional tensions could spill into major diplomatic and commercial hubs such as Istanbul.