Istanbul church attack: Gunmen kill one person during Sunday morning mass

Two gunmen attacked a Catholic church in Istanbul, turning morning mass into a horror scene and killing a man.

The shooting occurred at Santa Maria Church during Sunday mass at around 11:40 local time (08:40 GMT).

The Turkish Interior Minister condemned the “despicable attack” and said that an investigation had been opened. Police are still searching for the suspects.

The Islamic State claimed responsibility for the attack.

The group said in a post on the Telegram application that two of its fighters carried out the attack and then fled to safety.

Surveillance cameras published by Turkish media showed the moment of the attack. The worshipers were standing facing the altar when two armed men entered the back of the church.

They seemed to be following a man who had just entered. After he was shot and mortally wounded, the gunmen quietly left.

The 19th-century church is located behind high walls, near a small fish market, on the banks of the Bosphorus on the European side of Istanbul. The police closed the surrounding streets.

Inside the church, investigators took statements from those who were there when the attackers occurred.

Turkish Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya, who visited the scene, said a person identified only as CT died in the attack.

Istanbul Governor Davut Gul told reporters outside the church that the victim was a Turkish citizen and no one else was injured. He said that the attackers shot only one person.

It was not immediately clear what motivated the attack or why the victim was targeted.

The dead man's uncle told local media that the victim was 52 years old and about to become a Christian, but had not yet been baptized. Another relative said he was mentally ill, and insisted he was not the target of the attack.

In a post on X, Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu said: “We will never allow those who try to disrupt our unity and peace by attacking places of worship in our city.”

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan expressed his condolences over the attack and said that “necessary steps” were being taken to pursue the killers, who he expected to find “within 24 hours.”

The Pope offered his support, expressing his “closeness to the community of the Church of Santa Maria” at the conclusion of his weekly prayers at the Vatican.

Such attacks on the Christian minority in Türkiye are rare. The city's mayor said that Muslims and Christians live in harmony in the area, and that there is a real feeling of shock among the community.