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Six die in US consulate attack in Istanbul

(Agencies)
Updated: 2008-07-09 20:16

ISTANBUL, Turkey - Men armed with pistols and shotguns attacked a police guard post outside the U.S. consulate in Istanbul on Wednesday, sparking a gunbattle that left three attackers and three officers dead.

An unidentified man lies on the ground lifeless after an attack outside of the U.S. Consulate in Istanbul, Turkey, Wednesday, July 9, 2008. Armed men attacked a police guard post outside the U.S. consulate in Istanbul on Wednesday. Turkish officials called it "a terrorist attack" and said three attackers and three policemen were killed.[Agencies]

Turkish and U.S. officials called the shooting a terrorist attack. The U.S. ambassador to Turkey and Turkey's foreign ministry said security around all American diplomatic missions in Turkey had been increased.

Yavuz Erkut Yuksel, a bystander, told CNN-Turk television the attackers emerged from a vehicle and surprised the guard.

"One of them approached a policeman while hiding his gun and shot him in the head," Yuksel said.

Footage from a security camera at the site showed four armed and bearded men emerging from a car and killing a traffic policeman, then running toward a guard post some 50 yards away as other policemen fired back, the Dogan news agency reported.

The shootout caused panic and scattered people who were waiting in a line for visas. U.S. security personnel went inside the compound because they are not authorized to engage in armed action on Turkish soil, Dogan said.

A fourth policeman and the driver of a towing vehicle were wounded in the attack, Istanbul Gov. Muammer Guler said.

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