The number of people detained in connection with a terrorist attack targeting a police checkpoint in front of Yapı Kredi Plaza in Istanbul’s Beşiktaş district has risen to 11, authorities said.
The Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office said the investigation into the attack on Cömert Street in the Levent neighborhood is ongoing. As part of the probe, counterterrorism police carried out coordinated operations in Istanbul, Kocaeli, and Konya, detaining five additional suspects.
One more suspect was later taken into custody, bringing the total number of detainees to 11, including two attackers who remain hospitalized.
Nine of the suspects are currently undergoing procedures at the Istanbul Police Department, while the two injured attackers are expected to be transferred to police custody after completing their medical treatment.
Security sources said the individuals who carried out the attack were found to have prior criminal records related to links with radical organizations as well as drug use. Authorities said the investigation is being conducted on multiple fronts, with early findings indicating the attack may not have been an isolated incident but part of a broader, multilayered provocation attempt.
Sources also drew attention to the location and target selection, noting that the Israeli Consulate in the area has long been closed and is not conducting active diplomatic operations. They warned that portraying the attack as targeting a diplomatic mission could align with efforts to manipulate public perception and international opinion.
Istanbul Governor Davut Gül said on Tuesday two police officers were slightly injured in the attack. “An attack occurred against our police officers securing the area in front of Yapı Kredi Plaza in Levent. As a result, two of our police officers were slightly injured. One of the terrorists was killed, and two others were neutralized while injured,” he said.
Authorities also cautioned against the circulation of unverified or raw footage from the scene, emphasizing that visual content should be kept to a minimum. Security sources warned that uncontrolled sharing of such material could create fear, panic, and a sense of insecurity among the public, as well as reinforce perceptions of a high-level terrorist threat in Türkiye.
They further stressed that references to a “diplomatic target” do not reflect the reality of the incident and could distort the nature of the attack, mislead the public and contribute to provocative narratives.
