This is the moment when an armed female assailant is shot and killed by Turkish police after she opened fire on its Istanbul headquarters.
CCTV footage released by Turkish police shows the woman attempting to storm the building, brandishing an assault rifle, and firing at the main entrance,
The woman, identified as Elif Sultan Kalsen, 28, was killed by police, and was later found to have been carrying a bomb.
Attack: Video footage shows a woman, who was identified by Turkish police as Elif Sultan Kalsen, behind a barrier aiming an automatic weapon at the police headquarters in Istanbul
Shot: Kalsen’s bright red hair flies out behind her as she is shot by police and falls forward
Police say Kalsen, who was also carrying a rifle, handgun and pendik escort grenades, was a known member of ‘The Revolutionary People’s Liberation’ (DHKP-C).
Kalsen and a male assailant tried to storm the police headquarters in Istanbul yesterday afternoon, and police later arrested her accomplice.
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A picture emerged yesterday, showing Kalsen lying on the ground with a rifle strapped to her body and a handgun by her side.
‘The Istanbul police headquarters on Vatan street was targeted by rifle fire and a female terrorist was killed in the clash,’ the Istanbul governor’s office said in a statement yesterday.
The woman was carrying a rifle, two hand grenades and one pistol, it said. Local media said a man had also been detained.
Shot dead: A picture of the red-haired woman lying on the ground with a rifle strapped to her body and a handgun by her side has emerged
Arrest: Turkish plain-clothes policemen detain a suspect during a operation against the leftist terrorist group DHKP-C in the Okmeydani neighbourhood of Istanbul
A young man suspected of being a member of the leftist terrorist group DHKP-C is held in Istanbul today
A Turkish plain-clothes policeman escorts a man suspected of being a member of the leftist terrorists DHKP-C
Turkish policemen launch a operation against the leftist terrorist group DHKP-C early this morning
Earlier today, Turkish police launched early morning raids against suspected members of an ultra-leftist group in Istanbul after two deadly shoot outs in the city were blamed on the militants.
At least 10 people were arrested in the raids in the Okmeydani district of Istanbul after dozens of police deployed in armoured vehicles, Turkish media said.
The raids came two days after a prosecutor was killed in Istanbul in a hostage-taking blamed on the far-left Revolutionary People’s Liberation Party-Front (DHKP-C).
Separately, police detained a gunman on Wednesday who entered an Istanbul branch of the ruling AK Party and hung from its window a Turkish flag with the emblem of a sword added.
The attack comes a day after Turkish prosecutor Mehmet Selim Kiraz, 46, died in hospital after members of the Revolutionary People’s Liberation Party-Front (DHKP-C) stormed a courthouse and took him hostage. It is not known who fired the fatal shots.
Ready: At least 10 people were arrested in the raids in the Okmeydani district of Istanbul after dozens of police deployed in armoured vehicles, Turkish media said
Heavily armed: Turkish policemen launched a huge operation against the DHKP-C today
Turkish police officers lead suspected members of the leftist terrorist group away from Okmeydani in Istanbul
Turkish police officers launch an operation against the leftist terrorist group DHKP-C in Istanbul at dawn today
A Turkish plain-clothes policewoman escorts a female suspected militant detained in Okmeydani today
The Istanbul raids were carried out in the early hours of this morning, before the sun had come up
Yesterday, the grieving family of Mr Kiraz who died after being shot in the head and chest during Tuesday’s courthouse siege wept over his coffin at his funeral.
His coffin was covered with the Turkish flag for his funeral at Eyup Sultan Mosque in Istanbul.
The DHKP-C says it wants revenge for the killing of Berkin Elvan, who died in March last year after spending 269 days in a coma due to injuries inflicted by police in the mass protests of early summer 2013.
The Istanbul prosecutor Mehmet Selim Kiraz who was killed after being taken hostage by DHKP-C militants was himself investigating the Elvan case.
Elvan, who lived in Okmeydani which is known as a hub for left-wing and Kurdish sympathisers, has become an icon for the far-left since his death
Caught on camera: CCTV footage shows two DHKP-C members just after they entered the Istanbul Court House in Istanbul on Tuesday
The two men were seen as they moved through the building before taking Turkish prosecutor Mehmet Selim Kiraz hostage at his office
Threat: The Revolutionary People’s Liberation Party-Front published disturbing photographs of the terrified prosecutor with a gun to his head on their official Facebook page before he was shot
Police HQ: Television footage showed police sealing off the street in the central Aksaray neighbourhood
People react to the shooting of an armed woman in Istanbul. She was carrying a rifle, two hand grenades and one pistol
Armed: The woman was carrying a rifle, two hand grenades and one pistol, it said. Local media said a man had also been detained
Two of Kirtaz’s captors were killed after security forces took back the building where the far-left group was holding him.
Gunshots were heard and smoke could be seen rising from the scene at the end of the six-hour stand-off.
Hundreds of lawyers, prosecutors and staff stood in respect on every floor of the giant Istanbul Caglayan Palace of Justice where Kiraz worked and the hostage drama unfolded.
‘We will not forget you, our martyr,’ read a gigantic banner, as a huge Turkish flag was hung from the top floor. The courthouse is to be renamed after Kiraz.
Justice Minister Kenan Ipek said the two members of the DHKP-C who took him hostage had ‘held a gun to the nation’.
‘We don’t see this as an attack on our deceased prosecutor, but on the whole justice system,’ he said at a ceremony for Mr Kiraz.
‘Our state is powerful enough to track down those behind these lowlifes… The fact these assassins are dead shouldn’t put those nefarious and dark forces at ease.’
Grief: The family of Mehmet Selim Kiraz grieve over his coffin during his funeral at Eyup Sultan Mosque in Istanbul, Turkey. He died in hospital after he was taken hostage by the far-left organisation
Mourning: The coffin of the prosecutor was passed through the crowds of mourners gathered to pay their respects. He had been leading an investigation into the death of teenager Berkin Elvan, who died aged 15
Respects: Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu (L), the son of killed prosecutor Mehmet Selim Kiraz (C) and Turkish National Assembly President Cemil Cicek (R) stand by Kiraz’ coffin in Istanbul
Gathering: Prosecutors, lawyers and judges stand near a statue of Lady Justice during the funeral ceremony
Defiant: Mourners at the funeral of Kiraz hold a picture of the prosecutor high in tribute to the lawyer
Mr Kiraz, a father of two married to a judge who also worked at the courthouse, was targeted for his part in an investigation into the death of Berkin Elvan.
The 15-year-old was severely wounded after being hit on the head by a tear-gas canister fired by a police officer during anti-government protests in Istanbul in June 2013.
After spending 269 days in a coma, Elvan eventually died on March 11 last year. His death, and the subsequent investigation, have since become a rallying point for the country’s far-left.
Police chief Selami Altınok said officers stormed the building on Tuesday after hearing gunshots, and killed two of the gunmen.
‘We carried out the negotiation for six hours. But our security forces launched the operation after gunshots were heard while terrorists were speaking on the phone during the negotiation,’ he said.
Critical: Prosecutor Mehmet Selim Kiraz was taken to hospital with gunshot wounds but died of his injuries
Shattered: The broken window of the room where prosecutor Mehmet Selim Kiraz was held hostage and shot
Horror: The prosecutor was leading an investigation into the death of 15-year-old Berkin Elvan
The emergency began at 2.36pm local time (12.36 GMT) when members of the Revolutionary People’s Liberation Party-Front stormed into the office of Mr Kiraz.
Images of a masked militant holding a gun to Mr Kiraz’s head were then posted on the group’s Facebook page, along with a demand for police to confess on live TV within the hour.
Armed police rushed to the scene and were shown escorting court officials out of the building, but there was no sign of Mr Kiraz before the deadline arrived and live TV feeds were cut.
Shots were then heard from inside the building, according to the Dogan news agency.
In a statement published by Turkish media, the hostage taking was claimed by the Marxist Revolutionary People’s Liberation Party-Front, which has been behind a string of recent attacks.
The group published pictures showing one of the militants – his face concealed by a scarf with the group’s red and yellow insignia – holding a gun to Kiraz’s head.
They had also plastered their flags and posters on the walls of his office.
Protesters: Turkish police use water cannons to disperse protesters who expressed support for an alleged militant member of the banned leftist group DHKP-C group who took Turkish Mehmet Selim Kiraz hostage
Emergency: An ambulance leaves the courthouse after police storm the building. Mr Kiraz was taken to hospital where he died from his injuries
Over: Istanbul Security Chief Selami Altinok, centre-right, and Deputy Chief Prosecutor Orhan Kapici speak to the media outside the main courthouse in Istanbul at the end of the siege
Gunshots: According to the Dogan news agency, gunshots were heard from inside the building after the militant group’s deadline passed
Demands: The group were demanding that Mr Kiraz name the policemen implicated in Mr Elvan’s death, which has become a rallying point for the country’s far-left
Turkish media said that the group had given a deadline of 3:36 pm (13.36 BST) for the prosecutor to identify the police officers who they say were behind the killing of Elvan or he would be shot.
In a brief video message on a widely-followed Twitter account describing itself as that of Elvan’s family, his father appeared to call on the group not to harm the prosecutor.
‘We want justice. We don’t want anyone to shed even a drop of blood. We don’t want other mothers to cry,’ Sami Elvan said.
Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu met with the current and former interior and justice ministers at the ruling AK Party headquarters in Ankara to discuss the hostage taking, officials in his office said.
The DHKP-C said on its website it wanted the police officer it blames for Elvan’s death to ‘confess’ on television, the officers involved to be tried in ‘people’s courts’, and charges against those who attended protests for Elvan to be dropped.
Innocent: Berkin was on his way to buy bread during anti-government street protests when he was struck in the head by a high-velocity gas canister
Strength of feeling: Elvan has since become an icon for the Turkish far-left and his supporters accuse the authorities of covering up the circumstances and perpetrators of his death
The DHKP-C blames the ruling AK Party for the killing of teenager Elvan. He was aged 15 at the time of his death, which was followed by mass nationwide protests that were also largely put down by the police.
Elvan has since become an icon for the Turkish far-left and his supporters accuse the authorities of covering up the circumstances and perpetrators of his death.
The United States, European Union and Turkey list the DHKP-C as a terrorist organisation. It was behind a suicide bombing at the U.S. Embassy in 2013.
The DHKP-C has claimed a string of attacks in Turkey in recent months, including an attempted grenade attack in January on police guarding the Dolmabahce palace in Istanbul that caused no serious casualties.
It also claimed a suicide attack in Istanbul later that month but, amid a bizarre sequence of events then withdrew the claim, saying it had made a mistake.
Even more strangely, it had said at the time that the suicide bomber was Elif Sultan Kalsen but her parents then said the body was not hers. She has been missing ever since.
The authorities then indicated the bomber was a Russian woman from the Caucasus who had married an Islamist jihadist.
In 2001, two policemen and an Australian tourist died in a DHKP-C attack in central Istanbul.
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