iStock/Thinkstock(ANKARA, Turkey) — Turkish authorities have taken into custody a man who allegedly fired shots near the entrance to the U.S. embassy in Turkey’s capital city of Ankara early Tuesday, a U.S. State Department official told ABC News.
Turkish media reported that no one was injured in the incident that occurred around 3:55 a.m. local time.
Authorities in the country are investigating, the State Department official said. The State Department announced in a statement that the embassy in Ankara and the consulates in Istanbul and Adana will be closed on Tuesday.
The incident occurred hours after Russia’s ambassador to Turkey was assassinated at an art showing in Ankara by a man identified as a member of the Turkish riot police. The gunman shouted during the incident in Arabic, “Allahu akhbar” (“God is greatest”) and yelled in Turkish: “Don’t forget Aleppo, don’t forget Syria. Until these places are safe you will not taste any safety either.”
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