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Turkish prosecutor Mehmet Selim Kiraz has been badly wounded and two gunmen who took him hostage killed after a shootout at a courthouse in Istanbul, officials say.
Gunshots were heard and smoke was seen rising from the scene, after special forces reportedly entered the building.
Mehmet Selim Kiraz was apparently taken hostage because he had headed an inquiry into the death of teenager Berkin Elvan during anti-government protests in 2013.
A banned Marxist revolutionary group is said to be behind the incident.
A statement posted online had said Mehmet Selim Kiraz would be killed if the group’s demands were not met.
Istanbul’s police chief Selami Altunok said that police had negotiated with the gunmen for six hours, but eventually stormed the courthouse “because of gunshots heard from inside the prosecutor’s office”.
“Our prosecutor is in hospital and seriously wounded,” he said, adding that he would require an operation.
The gunmen had released dramatic images of a gun being held to the head of Mehmet Selim Kiraz as the hostage crisis unfolded.
The Turkish government banned live TV coverage of the incident, citing security concerns.
Sukriye Erden, a lawyer negotiating with the hostage takers, said they had demanded that the police announce the names of four members of the security services whom they said were connected to the death of Berkin Elvan.
Berkin Elvan, who was then 14, was struck in the head by a police tear gas canister in June 2013 as he went to buy bread during mass demonstrations that began in Istanbul and spread across Turkey.
He died in an Istanbul hospital last year, after spending nine months in a coma.
Recep Tayyip Erdogan, now Turkey’s president, inflamed passions shortly after the teenager’s death when he said the boy had been carrying a slingshot and had been “taken up into terrorist organiations”.
Suspected members of the Revolutionary People’s Liberation Party-Front (DHKP-C) took the prosecutor hostage on the sixth floor of the Caglayan court house, reports said.
The DHKP-C is considered a terrorist group by Turkey, the European Union and US. It said it carried out a suicide bombing in February 2013 at the US embassy in Ankara, where a security guard was killed.
In January, a man linked to the banned Marxist group was arrested near the prime minister’s offices in Istanbul, reportedly after throwing two grenades that failed to explode.
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Turkish prosecutor Mehmet Selim Kiraz, who is heading the inquiry into the death of teenager Berkin Elvan during anti-government protests in 2013, has been taken hostage by gunmen in Istanbul.
Dramatic images have emerged on social media of a gun being held to the head of Mehmet Selim Kiraz at a court house in Istanbul.
A banned Marxist revolutionary group is said to be behind the incident.
A statement posted online said Mehmet Selim Kiraz would be killed if their demands were not met.
Turkish special forces entered the court house, which was evacuated, and gunshots were heard from inside the building, Turkish news agencies reported.
City police chief Selami Altinok told reporters that negotiations with the hostage takers were under way.
“We are trying to resolve the issue without anyone being hurt,” he said.
The Turkish government has banned live TV coverage of the incident, citing security concerns.
Berkin Elvan, who was then 14, was struck in the head by a police tear gas canister in June 2013 as he went to buy bread during mass demonstrations that began in Istanbul and spread across Turkey.
After nine months in a coma Berkin Elvan eventually died in an Istanbul hospital.
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan inflamed passions shortly after Berkin Elvan’s death when he said the boy had been carrying a slingshot and had been “taken up into terrorist organizations”.
Suspected members of the Revolutionary People’s Liberation Party-Front (DHKP-C) took the prosecutor hostage on the sixth floor of the Caglayan court house, reports said.
A website close to the group has published a series of demands, including calls for an immediate confession from police officers responsible for the boy’s death, and for an end to prosecutions of protesters charged over the clashes.
Berkin Elvan’s father appealed for the prosecutor to be freed: “My son is dead but let no-one else die.”
The DHKP-C is considered a terrorist group by Turkey, the European Union and US. It said it carried out a suicide bombing in February 2013 at the US embassy in Ankara, where a security guard was killed.
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Turkey’s PM Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said 15-year-old Berkin Elvan who died on Tuesday from injuries sustained in last year’s anti-government protests had links to terrorism.
Berkin Elvan spent nine months in a coma after being hit by a tear gas canister as he went to buy bread.
His death triggered more clashes with the police in over 30 towns and cities.
Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s comments could further inflame political tensions, correspondents say.
In a campaign speech ahead of local elections on March 30, Recep Tayyip Erdogan said the teenager was connected to “terrorist organizations”.
Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said 15-year-old Berkin Elvan had links to terrorism
“This kid with steel marbles in his pockets, with a slingshot in his hand, his face covered with a scarf, who had been taken up into terror organizations, was unfortunately subjected to pepper gas,” he said in the speech broadcast on state TV.
Berkin Elvan’s funeral took place in Istanbul on Wednesday, providing a focus for further expressions of discontent with Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Police fired water cannon and tear gas at protesters near Taksim Square, while his coffin was carried through the city’s streets.
Tens of thousands of mourners chanted anti-government slogans and Berkin Elvan’s mother accused Recep Tayyip Erdogan of killing her son.
Berkin Elvan’s death brought to at least eight the toll from last year’s unrest, including one policeman.
The protests began over plans to develop Istanbul’s Gezi Park into a new mosque and shopping centre, but escalated into national demonstrations against what opponents see as Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s growing authoritarianism.
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The funeral of Berkin Elvan – a teenage boy injured during Istanbul anti-government protests last year – has gathered tens of thousands of people on the streets of Turkey’s biggest city.
Berkin Elvan, 15, spent 269 days in a coma before his death on Tuesday.
Many of the protesters echoed his mother’s claim that Turkish PM Recep Tayyip Erdogan was Berkin’s “killer”.
Police in the capital Ankara fired tear gas to disperse several thousand protesters who had gathered in the central Kizilay square.
Berkin Elvan was 14 when he was struck on the head by a tear gas canister while going to buy bread during last year’s unrest.
“Berkin’s murderers are the AKP police,” protesters shouted in Istanbul, referring to PM Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP).
The crowds, shouting anti-government slogans, lit a huge fire as they made their way to a cemetery for the burial of the teenager.
“The rage of mothers will suffocate the killers,” screamed others.
Tens of thousands of people have marched through Istanbul for Berkin Elvan’s funeral (photo Reuters)
Berkin Elvan’s death triggered violent protests in at least 32 towns and cities across the country on Tuesday – reminiscent of last year’s unrest.
President Abdullah Gul expressed his sadness and appealed for calm, urging everyone “to do everything to prevent this from happening again”.
He said Turkey was going through difficult days and that the “mind of the state has become overwhelmed by anger and hatred.”
The president added: “Little 15-year-old Berkin Elvan is the latest victim of this atmosphere.”
Correspondents say Berkin Elvan became a symbol of the heavy-handed tactics used by police to rein in the biggest demonstrations against the prime minister.
His death brought the toll from last year’s unrest to at least eight, including one policeman.
Berkin’s mother, Gulsum Elvan, had challenged Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who praised police “heroism” during the protests.
“It’s not God who took my son away but prime minister Erdogan,” the tearful mother told reporters on Tuesday.
The renewed unrest is likely to add to pressure on Recep Tayyip Erdogan, whose government has been rocked by an escalating corruption scandal ahead of elections that could decide his fate.
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