The 24 passengers and crew were unhurt.
Istanbul’s governor confirms a lone hijacker was killed by security forces after taking over a ferry off the coast of Turkey.
Turkish security forces shot dead a suspected Kurdish rebel early Saturday to end a 12-hour hostage drama on a small passenger ferry, and later reported that he was wearing fake explosives.
They killed the man in a predawn lightning raid on the Kartepe ferry, which was anchored off the port town of Silivri, west of Istanbul, after running out of fuel. The 24 passengers and crew were unhurt.
Naval commandos and anti-terror police stormed the ferry just before sunrise on Saturday, instantly killing the hijacker without any return of fire, said Governor Huseyin Avni Mutlu of Istanbul province.
Mutlu told reporters: “We decided to conduct the operation around 0535am local time and shortly after the start of the operation, the vessel was boarded and the assailant was killed.
“From the contacts we made with the assailant, it was clear that he was a terror group member. I can clearly say that.”
Although they have not claimed responsibility for the hijacking, it is thought that the main Kurdish rebel group, the Kurdistan Workers’ Party, or PKK are behind the incident.
Source: The Telegraph
