Istanbul, 6 February 2024 (dpa/MIA) - Two assailants were killed and six people, including three police officers, were injured after a "terrorist attack" at Istanbul's largest courthouse on Tuesday, according to Turkish Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya.

The attackers belonged to the leftist extremist group DHKP-C, Yerlikaya announced on social media platform X, formerly Twitter. The group has carried out attacks in Turkey in the past.

The assailants, identified as a man and a woman, targeted a security check point at Çağlayan courthouse's entrance at 11:46 am (0846 GMT), Yerlikaya added.

The exact motive behind the incident was not immediately clear.

Şer şirret şebek-e-ler Türkiye'yi istikrarsızlaştırma girişimlerine köle olarak hizmet etmeye devam ediyorlar ama dünyaya rezil oluyorlar!

Türk polisi Çağlayan Adliyesi'ni kana bulama girişiminde bulunan DHKP - C bağlantılı teöristleri anında temizledi!pic.twitter.com/P2mAr6KExQ

— yusuf kaplan (@yenisafakwriter) February 6, 2024

Images on broadcaster CNN Türk showed people fleeing into the courthouse in panic, while gunshots could be heard outside.

The courthouse - where serious crimes, including terror charges, are tried - has been the scene of armed attacks in the past.

In 2015, a public prosecutor was killed inside his Çağlayan courthouse office after the DHKP-C took him hostage.

Photo: Print screen