Turkey has blocked access to Twitter and YouTube over the publication of photographs of an Istanbul prosecutor held at gunpoint by far-left militants hours before he was killed in a shootout last week, officials said.

Islamic militants threw explosives at the gate of the heavily-guarded US consulate in Jeddah in a bold assault, then forced their way into the building, prompting a gun battle that left seven people dead and several injured before the three-hour long crisis was brought under control.

Attackers using a car today struck the heavily-guarded US consulate in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, with explosives and machine guns, injuring several people. After a gun battle inside, one attacker was killed, two were arrested and two others were surrounded, Saudi security officials said.

A car bomb exploded outside the heavily-guarded US consulate in the Saudi port city of Jeddah today, injuring several people. Hostages were understood to be held inside as a gunbattle raged in the latest strike against Western targets in the kingdom.

The United States warned today of new attacks on westerners’ housing complexes in the Saudi Arabian capital Riyadh, claiming one compound had been under surveillance by terrorists.