Istanbul Attack: Two Female Militants Killed in Bayrampasa Shootout

Two female militants have been killed in Istanbul after attacking police with gunfire and a grenade, the city’s governor has said.

A statement on a website close to the outlawed Revolutionary People’s Liberation Party-Front (DHKP-C) said it carried out the attack.

The two women died in a shootout with police after hiding in the building in Bayrampasa district, officials said.

Two policemen were hurt in the attack.

The activists had earlier opened fire at a riot police station in Bayrampasa, the Hurriyet newspaper reported.

The statement on the website hailed the “brave female liberation fighters”.

The extreme-left DHKP-C has waged a violent campaign for more than three decades.

Turkey says the group has killed dozens of police officers and soldiers along with scores of civilians since it was formed in 1978 with the aim of replacing the Turkish government with a Marxist one.

It also opposes what it calls US imperialism and has several times targeted US military personnel and diplomatic missions.

Istanbul Governor Vasip Sahin said an investigation into today’s attack was under way.

Both Kurdish rebels and far-left militants have attacked police in Istanbul in the past.

Today’s attack comes amid a rise in violence in Turkey since mid-2015.