An armed man injured a Turkish female employee working for Sweden‘s Honorary Consulate in Izmir province Tuesday, the governor’s office said.
The woman was taken to the hospital following the attack, the governor’s office said, adding that an investigation has been launched into the incident.
The employee, identified as Emine T., who worked as a secretary at the consulate, was in critical condition in the hospital. The attacker was reportedly detained after being disarmed.
The attack happened around 12:45 p.m. (9:45 p.m. GMT), the Izmir governor’s office said on their website. They identified the attacker as “a mentally unstable” person, who was registered in eastern Türkiye. His nationality has not been revealed.
Turkish broadcaster Haber Türk reported the incident is believed to be linked to a dispute about the visa application process.
There was no immediate indication of any political motive behind the attack, the broadcaster added.
The Swedish consul-general will travel to Izmir on Wednesday to get more information about the incident, the Swedish Foreign Ministry said, adding that it was in close dialogue with the consulate general in Istanbul and its staff in Türkiye.
The consulate general is in contact with the honorary consulate in Izmir and with local authorities, the Foreign Ministry added.
The ministry said it would not comment further “on the threat to the diplomatic service or what security measures are being taken, as this risks counteracting the purpose of the measures.”
Meanwhile, Justice Minister Yılmaz Tunç condemned the attack in a post on messaging platform X, formerly known as Twitter.
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