Pro-Hamas 'suicide bomber' storms US-owned factory in Turkey and poses with 'explosive vest' while holding hostages

A pro-Hamas 'suicide bomber' has taken hostages after storming a factory owned by US cosmetics giant Procter & Gamble near Istanbul in protest at the war in Gaza. 

The man has been pictured with a suicide vest strapped to his chest while holding a gun, and is believed to be keeping seven factory workers captive. 

The alleged assailant can be seen concealing his face behind a keffiyeh - a black and white scarf which has become an emblem of Palestinian solidarity - and standing in front of a spray-painted flag of Palestine. 

The Turkish flag has also been painted alongside the Palestinian flag, next to the  words 'for Gaza' written in red. 

The consumer goods factor had been evacuated earlier today, while special forces and medical personnel sealed off the sprawling facility, Turkish media has reported. 

The man was standing next to a drawing of the Palestinian flag and the words 'for Gaza' painted on the wall in red

It was not immediately clear how many people were being held at the plant, which lies on the eastern outskirts of Turkey's largest city, a spokesperson from the union representing the factory workers told AFP.

The spokesperson said the assailant was holding seven people, adding that the rest of the plant's workers had been released.

A P&G spokesman said the site employs 500 people across multiple shifts, meaning that not all of them would have been working at the time of the attack.

'Earlier today, we evacuated our Gebze facility and are working with local authorities to resolve an urgent security situation,' the company said in a statement released to AFP, adding that it had no information about the assailant's motives.

'The safety of P&G people and our partners is our top priority,' the Cincinnati, Ohio based company added.

'It is true,' the police spokesman said when asked to confirmed media reports that the attack was linked to Gaza.

Footage from the scene showed police setting up a cordon around the sprawling plant.

'It is true,' a police spokesman said when asked to confirmed media reports that the attack was linked to Gaza.

Footage from the scene showed police setting up a cordon around the sprawling plant.

Special operation forces and medical personnel were dispatched to the scene, Turkish media reported.

A P&G spokesman said the site employs 500 people across multiple shifts, meaning that not all of them would have been working at the time of the attack (Pictured: Stock photo of P&G headquarters)

The war in Gaza was triggered by Hamas's October 7 attack on Israel, which resulted in the deaths of around 1,140 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official figures.

Militants also seized about 250 hostages. Israel says 132 remain in Gaza including at least 29 people believed to have been killed.

Following the deadliest attack in Israel's history, its military launched a withering offensive that has killed at least 27,019 people in Gaza, most of them women and children, according to the health ministry in the Hamas-run territory.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has emerged as one of the Muslim world's harshest critics of Israel for the massive toll of its campaign against Hamas militants.

He has branded Israel a 'terrorist state' and compared Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to Adolf Hitler.

Erdogan has also accused the United States of supporting 'genocide' in Gaza.

Erdogan's comments reflect widespread anger across the predominantly Muslim but officially secular country at the United States for its traditional support for Israel.

Hundreds of protesters stormed a southeastern Turkish air based used by US and British forces on the eve of US Secretary of State Antony Blinken's visit to Ankara in November.

Turkish online campaigns are also trying to organise boycotts of US products such as Coca-Cola and the coffee chain Starbucks.