Jerusalem Post (Thanx, Will)

Gunman holes up in Turkish embassy
By JPOST.COM STAFF
08/17/2010 20:03

Report: Palestinian demands free passage to Ankara.

Further details about the Palestinian man who barricaded himself in the Turkish embassy were made available by a lawyer he has contacted on Tuesday, Israel Radio reported.

According to the Palestinian man's lawyer, who has kept in contact with the suspect by cellphone while he is in the embassy, the man is armed with a pistol and a knife. He claims that he is being pursued by the Israeli and Palestinian intelligence services because he has information that could "bring down several senior Palestinian Authority officials."

The man has demanded safe passage to Ankara, Turkey and has not been injured, his lawyer said.

According to earlier reports, a Palestinian man was hit by gunfire after entering the Turkish embassy in Tel Aviv on Tuesday.

Tel Aviv police and ambulance have not been allowed to enter the embassy building to treat the man or determine the what occurred during the shooting.

Police believed that the man is mentally ill and that he was shot in the legs and is not in critical condition, according to an Israel Radio report,

Police confirmed that a Palestinian man removed all his clothes Tuesday on Yarkon Street by Turkish embassy when he was shot by an "unknown individual." A large police response has converged outside the embassy building and Magen David Adom ambulances were rushed to the area.