ISTANBUL (AP) - Two female assailants opened fire at the U.S. Consulate in Istanbul on Monday and at least six Turkish security forces were killed elsewhere in a day of heavy violence in Turkey, where a government crackdown has targeted Islamic State militants, Kurdish rebels and far-left extremists.
Turkey has seen a sharp spike in clashes between security forces and rebels of the Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK, in the a wake of its campaign against PKK targets in Iraq in tandem with airstrikes against Islamic State militants in Syria. Hundreds of suspected militants have also been rounded up at home.
No one was hurt in the attack on the U.S. Consulate, which came just weeks after Turkey agreed to take a more active role in the U.S.-led campaign against the Islamic State group and to allow the U.S.-led coalition to use its bases in the fight against IS. On Sunday, the U.S. military announced that a detachment of six F-16 fighter jets and some 300 personnel had arrived at Turkey's southern Incirlik Air Base.
A far-left group that carried out a 2013 suicide bombing on the U.S. Embassy in Ankara claimed it was involved in the attack.
Both assailants fled, and one was later shot and taken into custody. The Revolutionary People's Liberation Army-Front, or DHKP-C identified her as 51-year-old Hatice Asik and said she was a member of the group, which is considered a terrorist organization by the U.S. and Turkey. The other assailant was still at large.
In a statement on its website the group described Asik as a "revolutionary" fighting American oppression and vowed to maintain its struggle until Turkey is "cleared" of all U.S. bases on its territory.
Turkey's Foreign Ministry condemned the attack and said security at U.S. missions around the country had been increased. It said Turkey was determined to fight terrorism through "cooperation and solidarity" with its NATO ally.
In Washington, State Department Spokesman John Kirby said U.S. officials were working with Turkish authorities to investigate the incident. He said the consulate would reopen for business on Tuesday.
Hours after the attack, police wearing flak jackets and holding machine guns blocked off streets leading to the consulate. The building, which is surrounded by fortified walls, was intact and its flag was flying.
Earlier Monday, 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. The suspected bomber was killed during the explosion, according to the Istanbul governor's office.
Unknown assailants later fired on police inspecting the scene of the explosion, sparking another gunfight with police that killed a police officer and two assailants.
Meanwhile, violence intensified between security forces and Kurdish rebels in the mainly Kurdish southeast on Monday, where rebels in the province of Sirnak fired at a helicopter carrying conscripts, killing one and injuring another.
Four policemen were also killed in Sirnak when their armored vehicle was attacked with a roadside bomb, the Dogan news agency reported.