A recent gang shootout in Athens, Greece, claimed the lives of some six Turkish nationals on Monday, according to Turkish media.

The deceased were allegedly connected to organized crime, according to the police. The incident was one of the deadliest in recent memory in Greece.

A police statement said the victims were found in the coastal town of Artemida, 35 kilometers (22 miles) east of the capital.

"Six fatally injured Turks were found after shots were fired in Artemida," authorities reported.

Several killings attributed to gang warfare have occurred in Greece in the past months, with some news reports blaming fuel smuggling.

But the number of dead in Monday's incident is uncommonly high.

In June, a 37-year-old former convict and alleged bodyguard was gunned down outside his home in Athens' Korydallos district alongside another man.

A year earlier, a 38-year-old petrol station owner had been killed at his establishment in the Athens suburb of Gerakas.

Kalashnikov assault rifles, a popular weapon in organized crime hits in Greece, were used in both attacks.

The petrol station owner's family later said he was targeted by "extortionists and organized crime figures" for "refusing to be part of an illegal racket."