The French Embassy in Ankara and the French consulate in Istanbul will be closed until further notice after the country’s diplomatic missions in Turkey have cancelled their planned events to mark France’s National Day due to security concerns, the Hurriyet Daily News reports.
“Information points to a serious threat against plans for the celebration of the July 14 national holiday in Turkey. As a precaution, we have decided, in conjunction with the Turkish authorities, to cancel the celebrations,” a statement from the mission in Istanbul said.
The consulate general had been due to hold a reception on the evening of July 13, while French missions in the capital Ankara and the Aegean coastal city of İzmir had planned events for the following day.
Turkey has recently been facing security threats, including from militants of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), which was blamed for an attack on an Istanbul airport last month which killed 45 people and wounded hundreds.