Turkish Diplomat Among At Least Three Killed In Kurdish City

At least three people, including a Turkish diplomat, were killed in a shooting on July 17 in Irbil, the capital of Iraq's Kurdish autonomous region, security officials and Turkey's Foreign Ministry said.

Unidentified gunmen opened fire at a restaurant where Turkish diplomats were dinning, two Kurdish security officials said, a relatively rare attack in Irbil.

Turkey's Foreign Ministry said one Turkish consulate employee was killed in the attack.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said he "condemns the atrocious attack against our consulate employees in Irbil."

Turkey is working with the Iraqi authorities "to quickly find the perpetrators," Erdogan wrote on Twitter.

Kurdish security forces sealed off the area and were searching for the attackers, the Kurdish security sources said.

One witness said that one attacker entered the restaurant and started shooting before he fled in a car that was waiting for him outside.

Based on reporting by Reuters, dpa, and AFP