A gunman was killed and two others were wounded in a shootout with police outside the Israeli consulate in Istanbul. The attackers, armed with long-barrelled weapons, arrived in a rental car from Izmit and were linked to an organisation that “exploits religion”. Two police officers were lightly wounded in the incident. The Israeli foreign ministry confirmed there were no staff at the consulate at the time of the shooting, as Israel had withdrawn its diplomats amid security concerns and deteriorating relations with Turkey following the war in Gaza.

The incident occurred next to a major motorway just after midday, immediately outside the tower where the Israeli consulate is located. The gunfire echoed inside nearby bank headquarters, where thousands of workers were breaking for lunch. Footage obtained by Reuters showed an apparent attacker, in a dark top and carrying a backpack, moving among parked white police and security buses and firing, with an automatic rifle and a handgun.

Turkey’s Interior Minister Mustafa Ciftci said the attackers had links to an organisation that “exploits religion”, without naming the group. Turkish media reported it could be the Islamic State group, whose members clashed with Turkish police in Yalova in December, killing three officers and wounding nine others.