Prosecutor dies after Turkey hostage siege; 2 gunmen killed
A prosecutor involved in a controversial case died Tuesday after he was shot during a hostage siege in an Istanbul courthouse, CNN reports.
Prosecutor Mehmet Selim Kiraz died in the hospital from injuries he suffered during the attack, Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said, speaking to reporters on Turkish television.
The two gunmen who took the prosecutor hostage were killed in a shootout with police after a standoff that lasted for hours.
Kiraz was assigned to the controversial case of Berkin Elvan, a 15-year-old boy who was injured during the anti-government Gezi Park protests in June 2013.
The teen died the following March after having spent nine months in a coma. The case, with its overtones of possible police overreaction, has been politically contentious, just as the protests themselves were.
In an online post widely cited in Turkish media, the left-wing Revolutionary People's Liberation Party-Front claimed responsibility for the attack. The post said the gunmen were seeking to avenge Elvan's death.
Related: Prosecutor in case into killing of Gezi's youngest victim taken hostage in Istanbul courthouse