Female assailant held after two attackers open fire on U.S. consulate in Turkey

The U.S. Consulate in Istanbul has been fired on by two assailants, hours after a suspected car bomb attack at a police station. No one was hurt in the attack on the consulate building, but the two shooters escaped after a gun battle with police, Turkey’s Dogan news agency reported. Police have arrested a female suspect who was reportedly wounded and hid in a building following the attack, Turkish broadcaster NTV said. Officers armed with automatic rifles have cordoned off streets around the consulate in the Sariyer district on the European side of the city.

A synchronised war on terror.

Turkey’s stance on IS

Hours earlier, an overnight bomb attack at a police station in Istanbul injured three policemen and seven civilians and caused a fire that collapsed part of the three-story building. Police said the assailants exploded a car bomb near the station. Unknown assailants later fired on police inspecting the scene of the explosion. The attacks come at a time of a sharp spike in violence between Turkey’s security forces and rebels of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party, or PKK. Turkey is also taking a more active role against Islamic State militants. Last month it conducted aerial strikes against IS positions in Syria and agreed to let the U.S.-led coalition use its bases for its fight against IS.

Europe Istanbul