The U.S. diplomatic mission in Turkey is warning Americans to avoid the U.S. Consulate in Istanbul because of a security threat.
The consular website did not specify what kind of threat, only posting a message online that said the warning is due to “information about a possible security threat against the U.S. Consulate compound in Istanbul.”
The message on the consulate website also asks U.S. citizens to take appropriate steps to bolster their personal security and maintain a high level of vigilance.
The consulate compound in Istanbul has increased its security measures. The road to the consulate is closed off with metal barricades, and police vehicles are stationed in front of it in Turkey’s most populous city.
All U.S. Consulates and the American Embassy in Turkey are closed Saturdays and Sundays, which means there generally wouldn’t be visitors to the compound on the weekend anyway.
Citizens may not be aware of the warning unless they search for it on the website, but the Overseas Security Advisory Council tweeted out the message.
The consulate does plan to have normal working hours Monday.
The U.S. Consulate in Istanbul is no stranger to attacks. In August, two women attacked the compound. The two assailants shot at the building. No one was injured in that attack.
The far-left Revolutionary People’s Liberation Party-Front, or DHKP-C, said one of its members was involved in that attack. The United States and Turkey consider DHKP-C to be a terrorist organization.
That same group claimed responsibility for killing a Turkish security guard outside the U.S. Embassy in the Turkish capital of Ankara in 2013.
