Shooting at Israeli consulate in Istanbul; gunmen ‘neutralised’ | WATCH

Two policemen were injured and three suspects were “neutralised” following a shootout near Israeli consulate in Istanbul, Turkey’s Interior Minister Mustafa Çiftçi said on Tuesday.

The shooting incident took place in front of Yapı Kredi Plaza Blocks in Istanbul. The suspects enagged in an armed clash with the police officers.

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“Three individuals who engaged in an armed clash with our police officers on duty in front of the Yapı Kredi Plaza Blocks in Istanbul have been neutralized. In the clash, two of our heroic police officers sustained minor injuries,” the Turkish Minister said.

The suspects had arrived in Istanbul in a rental vehicle from Izmit and one of them had ties with an organisation that “exploits religion.” Two of them were brothers and one of them had a drug record.

“The identities of the terrorists have been identified. It has been determined that the individuals, who arrived in Istanbul by a rental vehicle from Izmit, include one with ties to an organization that exploits religion; and it has also been established that one of the two terrorists, who are brothers, has a drug record,” he added.

A video of the incident has also surfaced on social media, capturing the tense moments as security personnel move in on the suspects from multiple directions. A few are also seen crossing a road and hastily taking cover behind a bus.

The incident comes amid the ongoing war between Israel and Iran. At the time of the shooting, Israeli diplomats were not present at the consulate.