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Three gunmen and three Turkish policemen were killed on Wednesday in an attack outside the well-fortified US consulate in Istanbul that was condemned by US and Turkish officials as a "terrorist" act.
Officials have not yet made a statement on who was behind the attack and what the motive was, but media reports said police suspected it could be the work of Al-Qaeda.
The assailants, armed with guns and rifles, targetted a police guard post next to the high-walled mission in the upscale district of Istinye, Istanbul Governor Muammer Guler said.
Driving to the front of the consulate in a car, they emerged from the vehicle and opened fire at the post around 11:00am (0800 GMT), witnesses told NTV television, adding that they had also fired shots at the building.
The security forces returned fire, killing all three gunmen. A driver escaped in the car after the shoot-out, which lasted several minutes.
One policeman died on the spot, while two others succumbed to their injuries in hospital, Guler said.
Two other people - a policeman and the civilian driver of a police truck - were injured, he said.
The attack was "an obvious act of terrorism" aimed at the United States, the US ambassador to Turkey, Ross Wilson, said in Ankara. All US consulate staff were safe and accounted for, he said.
The White House condemned the attack and US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, on a visit to Tblisi, voiced "deep regret" at the loss of life and highlighted the "very rapid and proper response" by Turkish officials.
The European Union pledged solidarity with Turkey and the United States in fighting terrorism.
Turkish Interior Minister Besir Atalay said police had identified the three dead attackers and said that two of them had a criminal record.
Records showed that one of the assailants had travelled abroad, but did not say which country he had gone to, he added.
The NTV news channel reported that police had found information linking the gunmen to Afghanistan, leading to suspicions that the attack was inspired by the Al-Qaeda network. Police refused to comment on the report.
A major police operation was underway to catch the fourth attacker who sped away from the scene.
"I do not think it will be long before we catch this man," Atalay said.
The police post was outside the consulate's main public entrance, from where steep steps lead up to the fortified building.
The consulate was moved to its current high-security location in 2003 as foreign missions across the world stepped up security measures following the September 11, 2001 attacks in New York.
Turkish officials also condemned the attack and the investigation was handed to prosecutors specialising in terrorism cases.
"I strongly condemn such terrorist acts," said President Abdullah Gul. "Turkey will fight to the end against those who are behind them."
Since the attack, security measures had already been strengthened at the consulate, said Wilson.
Extra measures had also been taken at the US embassy in Ankara and the consulate in the southern city of Adana, which is near a major Turkish air base often used by US aircraft, he added.
"We remain a close friend and ally of Turkey. We'll not be deterred in any way by terrorists who are seeking to strike at us or at US-Turkish relations," he said.
The most recent attack on a foreign mission in Turkey was in 2003 when Al-Qaeda militants detonated a car bomb at the British consulate in central Istanbul, and simultaneously attacked the British HSBC bank.
The British consul was killed in the attacks, which followed the bombings five days earlier of two synagogues in Istanbul. About 60 people were killed in the four blasts, the deadliest terrorist attacks in Turkey.
