An armed assailant on Thursday raided a plant owned by the US consumer goods giant Procter & Gamble near İstanbul and took an undisclosed number of people hostage in protest of the ongoing Israeli war on Gaza, Agence France-Presse reported, citing Turkish media outlets.
The assailant appeared to be acting in protest of US support for Israel’s military assault on Gaza, the private DHA news agency reported.
A photo from within the plant located in the Gebze district of Kocaeli province showed drawings of Turkish and Palestinian flags on a wall with a note saying, “Doors will be opened for Gaza.” “Either musalla or death,” another note said. The photo was posted online by the local Kocaeli Gündem newspaper.
Musalla is an Arabic word meaning a space apart from a mosque, mainly used for funeral prayers in Islam.
The attacker is also seen in another photo holding a gun in his hand and wearing a black and white keffiyeh traditionally worn by Palestinian men.
Police took heavy security measures around the plant, which primarily manufactures cosmetics, and cordoned off the area.
It was not clear how many people were being held at the plant, which is located in the eastern outskirts of İstanbul.
Special operations forces and medical personnel were dispatched to the scene, DHA reported.
The ongoing Israeli attacks on Gaza have sparked angry protests and calls for a boycott of Israeli or Western companies viewed as endorsing Israel in Turkey as well as all around the world.
There are many images on social media showing lists of brands that posters claim are either Israeli in origin or pro-Israel, with people calling for a boycott of their products.
The health ministry in Gaza said Thursday at least 27,019 people have been killed in nearly four months of war between Palestinian militants and Israel.
A ministry statement said some 66,139 people have been wounded in Gaza since the war broke out on October 7 in response to Hamas militants’ unprecedented attack on southern Israel.
