Italian church in Türkiye attacked, Pope Francis speaks out

Turkish Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya announced on social media that the attack occurred at around 11:40 a.m. on January 28 (Turkish time) at the Santa Maria church in the Sariyer district of Istanbul, carried out by two masked men, according to AFP.

Turkish officials said the attack appeared to be more of an assassination attempt on a single person than on a church. About 40 people were attending mass at the church when the incident occurred.

Turkish riot police block the road near the Santa Maria Cathedral in Istanbul after the attack on January 28.

Minister Yerlikaya added that an individual identified only as CT, one of the attendees at the church service, was the target of the gun attack and died. An investigation has been launched to find the two perpetrators, who fled the scene after the shooting, according to Minister Yerlikaya.

Pope Francis expressed his support for the Santa Maria church after the attack, according to AFP. Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani also expressed "deep condolences and strong condemnation" over the attack.

Omer Celik, a spokesman for Türkiye's ruling AKP party, said the attackers had targeted a civilian during the ceremony. "Our security forces are conducting a large-scale investigation into the matter," Celik said.

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