Gunmen Take Hostages at US Company’s Factory, Citing Gaza

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ISTANBUL (AP) — Two gunmen took seven hostages at a factory owned by U.S. company Procter & Gamble in northwest Turkey on Thursday, according to media reports, apparently in protest of the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza.

Turkish media published an image of one of the purported suspects inside the factory, a man wearing what appeared to be a rudimentary explosives belt and holding a handgun.

Hours later, a P&G spokesperson said the situation at its plant in Gebze in the province of Kocaeli had been resolved and all personnel were safe and the assailant apprehended by law enforcement. The statement from the spokesperson referred to one assailant.

“The fact that no one was harmed is our greatest relief. We are grateful to the authorities and first responders who managed the situation with courage and professionalism,” the spokesperson said.

Earlier, private news agency DHA said the suspects entered the main building of the facility at around 3 p.m. local time (1200 GMT) and took seven members of the staff hostage.

It claimed the suspects’ actions were to highlight the loss of life in the Palestinian enclave. Some 27,000 have been killed in Israel’s military operation since Oct. 7, according to the Hamas-controlled Health Ministry.

Ismet Zihni said his wife Suheyla was among the hostages. Speaking from near the factory, he told DHA that he had called her. “She answered ‘We’ve been taken hostage, we’re fine’ and she hung up,” he said.

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