An armed attack has occurred at a Catholic church in Istanbul’s north during prayers, leaving one person dead, Turkish Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya said on Sunday, reported Sputnik.
“Today at 11:40 [08:40 GMT], as a result of an armed attack in the Catholic Church of St. Mary in Istanbul’s Sariyer district, citizen D.T. was killed,“ the minister said on X.
Two attackers wore masks and allegedly participated in the prayer, the minister said. He also said a comprehensive investigation and search were launched.
The attackers used automatic weapons, the CNN Turk broadcaster reported.
Several high-ranking Turkish officials, including ruling Justice and Development Party spokesman Omer Celik and presidential aide Akif Cagatay Kilic, have condemned the attack. Authorities “will not allow such provocations,“ Kilic said.
The Ministry of Interior Affairs told the press that the assailants were still at large. Two people wearing coats and wearing ski masks, who attacked the church, came to Sarıyer on a motorcycle. He escaped with the vehicle they left in the forest area. Polish Consul General Witold Lesniak was also in the church.
Hate crimes in Turkey on the rise
Alevis and Christians were targeted in the vast majority of religion-based hate crimes recorded in Turkey in 2022, according to a report by the Freedom of Belief Initiative (İÖG), a human rights project carried out by the Norwegian Helsinki Committee, the Gazete Duvar news website reported on Tuesday.
The report, published on Monday and titled “Hate Crimes Motivated by Bias against Religion, Belief or Non-Belief in Turkey 2022″ listed data obtained from work monitoring religion, belief or non-belief-based hate crimes that were committed in Turkey last year.
According to the report, which collected and examined the data in compliance with standards for international rights, the ongoing hate crimes against religious or faith communities, their places of worship and other venues, their religious or spiritual leaders and members go unpunished most of the time.
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