Ankara governor’s office said in a statement on Wednesday that 41-year-old man, who was wounded by police after he chanted slogans outside the Israeli embassy in Ankara while wielding a knife, had no link with any terrorist organisation and criminal records.
38-year-old Osman Nuri Çalışkan from Konya, who appeared to be mentally unstable, was shot after he ignored a police warning to stop, the governor’s office said.
The Israeli Embassy said in a written statement on Wednesday that “A single person tried to stab a Turkish police officer. One of the Turkish police officers situated in front of the embassy responded immediately and shot the attacker in the foot in order to neutralize him.”
The attack came at a moment, the normalization deal with Turkey and Israel which is expected to restore diplomatic relations between the two countries, was published in the Official Gazette on Sept. 9. The deal was ratified by Parliament on Aug. 20 after it was signed by President Tayyip Erdoğan on Aug. 31.
The ties between Turkey and Israel had been tense since 2010, when the Israeli navy killed one Turkish-American and nine Turkish pro-Palestinian activists who were on board the Mavi Marmara, part of the Gaza Freedom Flotilla heading to Gaza to deliver aid.