Turkish diplomat was killed on Wednesday in a shooting that took place in the Iraqi Kurdish capital Erbil, two Kurdish security officials told said.

Turkish diplomat was killed on Wednesday in a shooting that took place in the Iraqi Kurdish capital Erbil, two Kurdish security officials told said.

Unknown gunmen opened fire at a restaurant where the diplomats were dinning, the sources said. </s> A gunman shot dead a Turkish diplomat in the Kurdish Iraqi city of Erbil on Wednesday, before fleeing the scene. A local citizen was also killed, according to the Kurdish security service.

Turkey's Foreign Ministry said one of its staff had been killed in the shooting at the popular HuQQabaz restaurant close to Ankara's diplomatic mission to the autonomous region. Local media reported that the individual was Turkey's vice-consul in the city.

"The attacker walked into the restaurant and headed to a table where the three were sitting. He drew out two pistols and started shooting intensely at them. Then, he — the shooter — escaped," the owner told journalists.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the shooting.

Read more: Kurdish pursuit of an independent sovereign nation

The Turkish Foreign Ministry confirmed in a statement an employee was killed in an "atrocious attack."

"We are continuing our efforts with the Iraqi authorities and local authorities to ensure that the perpetrators of the attack are found quickly," Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Twitter.

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo condemned the killing. "There can be no justification for such acts of wanton violence," he said in a statement.

Witnesses in the city said roadblocks had been quickly thrown up around the Ainkawa neighborhood, which is home to the consulate and numerous restaurants.

Read more: Who are the Kurds?

Turkish jets regularly bomb positions belonging to the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), which Ankara has outlawed, in northern Iraq. The Turkish Defense Ministry said on Saturday that its military offensive in the region, which started in May, had been expanded.

rc/ng (Reuters, AFP, AP)

Each evening at 1830 UTC, DW's editors send out a selection of the day's hard news and quality feature journalism. You can sign up to receive it directly here. </s> Azad Lashkari | Kurdish security officials secure the area around a restaurant where a Turkish diplomat was shot dead in Erbil, Iraqi Kurdistan, July 17, 2019.

At least two people, including a Turkish diplomat, were killed in a shooting Wednesday at a restaurant in the Iraqi Kurdish capital Erbil in a rare attack in the semi-autonomous region that could raise tensions and Turkish ire.

The Asayish, the Kurdish security and intelligence organisation operating in Iraqi Kurdistan, confirmed the deaths of a Turkish diplomat and a civilian Wednesday. Another civilian was injured, said the statement, which was posted on Twitter.

Unidentified gunmen opened fire at a restaurant where Turkish diplomats were dining Wednesday afternoon, according to Kurdish security officials.

Security officials responded to an incident at the HuQQabaz restaurant located in an upscale commercial area on Erbil's main Airport Road, according to the local Rudaw news service.

The area was immediately sealed off and office workers, shoppers and diners were told to avoid the neighbourhood.

A witness told AFP that one attacker entered the restaurant and started shooting before he fled in a car waiting outside.

The victims have not been identified although Ankara has confirmed the killing of “an employee” at its consulate in Erbil.

The shooting came days after Turkey launched “Operation Claw-2” against what Ankara calls “PKK terrorists” in northern Iraq. The PKK (Kurdistan Workers Party) is considered a terrorist group by Turkey, the EU, the US and the UN. Ankara has vowed to destroy PKK bases operating in northern Iraq.

It was not known if Wednesday’s incident was linked to Operation Claw 2.

Responding to Wednesday's incident, Turkey vowed to retaliate against the “atrocious attack”.

Turkish presidential spokesman Ibrahim Kalim vowed a response against “those who are responsible for this atrocious attack,” in a Twitter post in Turkish.

Turkey has been engaged in military operations in the Kurdish areas of Syria and Iraq, including the Sinjar area and Qandil Mountains in northern Iraq.

While the autonomous Kurdish zone in northern Iraq is relatively secure, Turkish diplomats have been targeted in the broader region in the past. In 2014, the Islamic State (IS) group kidnapped Turkish diplomats in the Iraqi city of Mosul. They were released after more than three months in captivity. </s> (Hatha al-Youm | Iraq News )- The Iraqi foreign ministry condemned the attack against Turkish diplomats in Erbil that took place earlier Wednesday, adding that they are cooperating with the concerned apparatuses to identify the assailants."We condemn the attack that targeted a Turkish diplomat in Erbil and the Iraqi citizen in Erbil,"Iraq's Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Ahmad al-Sahaf said in a statement."We will resume our efforts in coordination with the official authorities to unfold the accident's mystery," al-Sahaf added.At least two people including a Turkish diplomat were shot dead on Wednesday in a rare attack in the capital of Iraq's northern Kurdish region.A gunman opened fire at a restaurant in Erbil where Turkish diplomats were dining before fleeing in a car driven by an accomplice, two Kurdish security officials and a witness said.There was no immediate claim of responsibility as security forces began a search for the attackers. </s> The Turkish Vice Consul was killed in the capital of Iraqi Kurdistan Erbil in an attack by armed men, according to the Iraqi channel Al Sumaria.

According to initial reports, killed three employees of the Turkish Consulate. However, it turned out that one of the victims survived. Assault with a firearm was committed in that moment, when the diplomat and his companions had dinner in the restaurant. The area of the incident was cordoned off by security forces, reports “Interfax”.

The Ministry of foreign Affairs of Turkey confirmed the death of an employee of the Consulate General in Iraq during the attack in Erbil. “Our Consulate in the Iraqi Erbil were killed in an armed attack outside the Embassy”, – said in a communiqué.

The report says that Ankara “continues to work closely with the Iraqi authorities for the operational establishment of the attackers”. This is the first time that diplomats were attacked in Erbil, reports TASS.

The official representative of the Turkish President Ibrahim Kalin promised that Ankara will respond in who was behind the attack on Turkish diplomats. “I Express my deep condolences to the relatives of the consular officer, who was killed during a brutal attack in Erbil. We are working on finding the perpetrators. Those who are behind the attack, will get our answer,” the representative wrote Erdogan on Twitter.

The situation commented the head of Turkey. “I condemn the attack on our consular staff in Erbil, We continue to make efforts together with Iraqi authorities to ensure that criminals were arrested in the nearest future”, – wrote President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on his Twitter page.

The Iraqi foreign Ministry also condemned the killing of the diplomat and its accompanying Iraqi province of Erbil (part of the Kurdish Autonomous region (KAR), having the status of broad autonomy within Iraq). This was announced on Wednesday the official representative of the Iraqi foreign Ministry, Ahmed al-Sahaf.

“We condemn the incident that happened with the Turkish diplomat in Erbil and Iraqi escort, and also led to the wounding of one man,” said the spokesman.

U.S. Secretary of state Michael Pompeo called the incident in Erbil act of wanton violence. “We strongly condemn the recent attack in Erbil, where he was killed at least one Turkish diplomat. There can be no justification for such acts of unwarranted violence, – said the state Secretary. – The United States confirmed its commitment to support the government and people of Turkey and Iraq.” Statement by Secretary of state published on the state Department website. </s> (Hatha al-Youm | Iraq News )- ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) on Thursday condemned a deadly shooting that killed a Turkish consular official and two others a day earlier in the regional capital of Erbil as a “premeditated terrorist attack.”“We are now treating the shooting incident in Erbil on Wednesday 17 July 2019, which killed three people, as a premeditated terrorist attack,” the KRG said, in a statement.“Our investigation is ongoing, and we will provide regular updates concerning its progress.”The shooting occurred early in the afternoon as a group of employees and diplomats from the Turkish consulate in Erbil arrived at a restaurant in a neighborhood on the western side of the city. An unidentified assailant opened fire and killed two people and severely injured another who later died of his wounds while receiving medical care at a nearby hospital.Read More: Turkish consulate employee, 2 civilians killed in Erbil shooting: SecurityNo group has yet claimed responsibility for the attack and the gunman is still at large, but many observers speculate the involvement of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), engaged in a decades-long insurgency against Turkey over Kurdish rights and self-rule that has resulted in the death of over 40,000 people on both sides.Wednesday's shooting comes amid a recent uptick in deadly clashes between Turkish forces and PKK fighters in which Ankara’s fighter jets have killed multiple high-ranking members of the group while bombarding its bases and outposts within the Kurdistan Region.One PKK official, however, has denied its fighters had anything to do with the killings.“We have no information regarding the incident and only heard about it through the media,” read a statement by Diyar Deniz, media director of the PKK’s armed wing, the People’s Defense Forces (HPG).In the hours that followed the shooting, Kurdish security (Asayish) said, “We condemn in the strongest terms the shooting in a restaurant in Erbil today,” adding, “We assure our citizens and foreign diplomats in particular that all necessary precautions will be taken to ensure the safety and security of the Kurdistan Region and its peoples.”The Turkish Foreign Ministry also confirmed on Wednesday that “an official” from their Erbil Consulate-General was killed in “a heinous attack,” while outside the compound.Editing by John J. Catherine </s> (Hatha al-Youm | Iraq News )- Kurdish security members stand guard near a restaurant where Turkish diplomats and Turkish consulate employee were killed in Erbil, Iraqi Kurdistan, July 17, 2019. Photo: ReutersHEWLÊR-Erbil, Iraq’s Kurdistan region,— At least two people including a Turkish diplomat were shot dead on Wednesday in a rare attack in the Iraqi Kurdistan capital city of Erbil, Kurdish security officials and Turkey’s foreign ministry said.A gunman opened fire at a restaurant where Turkish diplomats were dinning before fleeing in a car driven by an accomplice, two Kurdish security officials and a witness said.Security forces began a search for the attackers, the Kurdish officials said. There was no immediate claim of responsibility.Turkey’s foreign ministry said one of those killed was a diplomat working at its consulate to Iraq’s semi-autonomous Kurdish region in Erbil.A statement from the Kurdistan region’s internal security service said two people were killed – the diplomat and another civilian – and one other person wounded.The Kurdish officials and Iraqi state television earlier said three people were killed and that they were all Turkish diplomats and included the deputy consul.One witness told Reuters that an attacker entered the restaurant and started shooting before he fled in a car that was waiting for him outside.Security officials responded to an incident at the HuQQabaz restaurant located in an upscale commercial area on Erbil’s main Airport Road, according to Rudaw TV.The area was immediately sealed off and office workers, shoppers and diners were told to avoid the neighbourhood.A witness told AFP that one attacker entered the restaurant and started shooting before he fled in a car waiting outside.Turkey’s President Tayyip Erdogan, the Kurdish security service and Iraq’s Baghdad-based foreign ministry condemned the attack.The shooting came days after Turkey launched “Operation Claw-2” against Kurdish PKK rebels. It was not known if Wednesday’s incident was linked to Operation Claw 2.Turkish presidential spokesman Ibrahim Kalim vowed a response against “those who are responsible for this atrocious attack,” in a Twitter post in Turkish.Turkey fights Kurdish militantsTurkey’s main enemy in Iraqi Kurdistan is the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) militant group, which has waged a decades-long insurgency in Turkish Kurdistan in the southeast of the country and has bases across the border.Ankara’s forces regularly carry out air raids against PKK targets in Iraqi Kurdistan with the tacit approval of the KDP which has close ties with the Turkish government.Turkey and the ruling Kurdish party in Erbil, the Barzani’s KDP, have blamed the PKK for other Turkey-related incidents in Iraqi Kurdistan including the storming of a Turkish military camp earlier this year.It was a rare major security incident in Erbil, where a new Kurdistan president and prime minister, part of a clan that has controlled the KDP for decades, recently took office. The KDP has said it will continue to cooperate closely with Ankara against the PKK.“Nobody invited them (the PKK) here,” Prime Minister Masrour Barzani said in an interview with Reuters this month.“We disapprove of their activities and … of their presence here. We understand the concerns of the neighbouring countries about security issues,” he said, adding that Erbil would look to strengthen relations with Turkey.Iraq’s central government in Baghdad has occasionally condemned those air strikes, but has not moved to halt them.Turkey has been engaged in military operations in the Kurdish areas of Syria and Iraq, including the Yazidi Sinjar area and Qandil Mountains in northern Iraq.The PKK took up arms in 1984 against the Turkish state, which still denies the constitutional existence of Kurds, to push for greater autonomy in Turkish Kurdistan for the Kurdish minority who make up around 22.5 million of the country’s 79-million population. More than 40,000 Turkish soldiers and Kurdish rebels, have been killed in the conflict.A large Kurdish community in Turkey and worldwide openly sympathise with PKK rebels and Abdullah Ocalan, who founded the PKK group in 1974 and currently serving a life sentence in Turkey, has a high symbolic value for most Kurds in Turkey and worldwide according to observers.Copyright © 2019, respective author or news agency, Ekurd.net | Reuters | AFPComments Comments </s> Three people, including the Turkish deputy consul, have been killed in a shooting at a restaurant in Erbil, Iraqi Kurdistan, according to local media. Police confirmed the death of the Turkish diplomat.

The shooting was reported shortly after 2pm local time, and took place at a restaurant in an upmarket area of Iraqi Kurdistan’s capital city. Several officials from the Turkish Consulate General were present at the restaurant when the attack took place.

Though no group has yet claimed responsibility for the attack, tension between Turkey and the Kurds is nothing new. Turkey has fought a low-level armed campaign against Kurdish separatists for more than four decades, including raids and incursions into Kurdish territory in Iraq. Wednesday’s attack in Erbil comes just over a week after Turkish airstrikes killed Diyar Gharib Mohammed, a senior leader of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), in a mountainous area near the Iraq-Turkey border.

In addition, Turkey has been poised for months to send its forces into Manbij, Syria, an area partially under the control of Kurdish militias. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has long angled for the creation of a ‘security zone’ along his country’s Syrian border, in a bid to blunt the threat of Kurdish fighters there.

Think your friends would be interested? Share this story! </s> A Turkish diplomat has been martyred in an armed attack at a restaurant in Erbil, Iraq on Wednesday

Erbil, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - APP - 17th Jul, 2019 ) :A Turkish diplomat has been martyred in an armed attack at a restaurant in Erbil, Iraq on Wednesday.

According to the restaurant owner, attacker -- civil dressed and carrying two guns -- targeted the Turkish diplomats dining in the restaurant.

One Turkish diplomat, who was working at Turkey's Consulate General in Erbil, was martyred after the shooting attack.

Erbil's police chief Abdulhalik Talat said an investigation was immediately launched into the incident and detailed information will be shared later.

All the roads leading to other cities were blocked to prevent the attacker from escaping.

Security forces took measures in front of the restaurant after the attack.
A shooting in Erbil, Iraqi Kurdistan, leaves two dead, including a Turkish diplomat.