Turkish police capture gunmen who killed 1 person in Istanbul church
- Islamic State claimed responsibility for the attack, saying it was in response to a call by the group’s leaders to target Jews and Christians
- Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan called the church’s priest to offer condolences and support, his office said, publishing a video of the call
Turkish authorities have captured two gunmen who shot one person dead on Sunday during a service at a church in Istanbul, Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya said, in an attack claimed by Islamic State.
Yerlikaya said the attack, which Ankara condemned, took place on Sunday morning at the Italian Santa Maria Catholic Church in Istanbul’s Sariyer district, and that one Turkish citizen – who was targeted by the gunmen – was killed while attending the service.
“The two murder suspects who caused the death of our citizen Tuncer Cihan during the Sunday service at the Santa Maria Church in Sariyer this morning have been captured,” Yerlikaya later said on social media platform X, without saying what the motive for the attack was or who had carried it out.
Just before, Islamic State had claimed responsibility for the attack in a statement on Telegram, saying it was in response to a call by the group’s leaders to target Jews and Christians.
CCTV footage from inside of the church, verified by Reuters, showed the masked gunmen entering the building and shooting the man who was walking in front of them. The CCTV footage shows the men leaving almost immediately afterwards.
President Tayyip Erdogan called the church’s priest to offer his condolences and support, his office said, publishing a video of the call.
Pope Francis conveyed his condolences over the attack after his weekly Angelus prayer.
“I express my closeness to the community of Saint Mary Draperis Church in Istanbul that suffered an armed attack during mass that caused one death,” Pope Francis said.
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said on X that Italy’s foreign ministry was following updates on the “despicable act” and condemned it.
The church is run by an Italian order of Franciscan friars. Italy’s foreign minister, Antonio Tajani, said his ministry was following the situation along with the Italian embassy in Ankara and the consulate in Istanbul.
“I express my condolences and firm condemnation for the vile attack on Santa Maria Church,″ Tajani wrote on X. He added that “I am certain that the Turkish authorities will arrest those responsible.”
Turkey is 99 per cent Muslim, with a Christian population of about 180,000 people, according to state news agency Anadolu.
Additional reporting by Associated Press
