Istanbul, Feb 11
A woman was injured in an armed attack on Saturday during the mayoral election campaign of Turkey’s ruling Justice and Development Party in Istanbul, said Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya.
Yerlikaya said on social media platform X that shots were fired with long-barreled weapons and pistols in the Kucukcekmece district at around 4:30 p.m. local time, Xinhua news agency reported.
The attack took place during the election campaign of the Kucukcekmece party’s mayoral candidate, Aziz Yeniay, in the Kanarya neighbourhood.
One citizen was injured in the attack, and a large-scale investigation has been initiated into the incident, the Minister added.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan condemned the attack on his X account, saying, “We will never allow attempts to poison the electoral process by those who cannot tolerate the healthy course of the election process.”
The mayoral elections in Turkey will take place on March 31.