Istanbul – The gunman who killed at least 39 people in a shooting at a popular nightclub in the Turkish city of Istanbul remained at large Monday as authorities continued their search for the assailant.
Istanbul governor Vasip Sahin said the attack began at 1:15 am on Sunday (2215 GMT Saturday), when an attacker forced his way into the Reina nightclub by shooting dead a police officer and a civilian at the entrance.
He described the shooting as a terrorist attack. Sixty-five people were injured in the hail of bullets, according to the government.
Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim denied earlier reports that the attacker was wearing a Santa costume and spoke of only one suspect. Dogan had previously reported that two men dressed as Santa opened fire on the Reina nightclub with automatic weapons, and one witness had also spoken of two attackers.
“We know of an armed terrorist,” Yildirim said. The authorities are working non-stop to uncover the identity of the attacker with an extensive manhunt under way, he added. The attacker could have left his weapon in the club and mingled with the fleeing crowds to make his escape. All possibilities were being examined, Yildirim added.
“Terror can not intimidate us; it can not destroy our brotherliness, our closeness or our unity,” he said. Among the dead were 24 foreign nationals, Anadolu news agency reported Sunday evening. There were 25 men among the dead, and 14 women. Four had yet to be identified.
Respective foreign ministries confirmed that one young Israeli woman, three Lebanese and two Indian nationals were among those killed. Five Saudi citizens were also killed, an official at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul said.
Eleven Turks have also been confirmed dead. At least 10 Saudis were injured in the attack, Abdullah al-Rashuydan told the online edition of the Riyadh newspaper. Four Lebanese citizens were also injured, according to Lebanon’s general consul in Istanbul, Hani Chemaitelli.
Another Israeli woman was wounded in the shooting and French Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault said three French nationals were injured.
No group has yet claimed responsibility for the massacre. In New York, the United Nations Security Council strongly condemned the deadly attack. In a press statement issued Sunday afternoon, the Security Council members condemned “the heinous and barbaric terrorist attack” in the strongest terms.
In Washington, Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi said that “Americans stand in solidarity with the victims and all those families mourning loved ones today.”
“The cruelty of this attack is surely magnified by targeting a day dedicated to the hope of a new year,” Pelosi added.
The Reina, a techno nightclub with an often prestigious guest-list and a scenic restaurant overlooking the Bosporus strait, was reportedly packed with between 700 and 800 people when the attack took place.
Governor Sahin said the attacker was “spraying bullets on innocent people who were celebrating the new year.” The attack ended when special forces stormed the club. The manager of the nightclub said he did not believe the security precautions on New Year’s Eve were lacking.
Two weeks before the attack, Turkish police had already increased their presence in Ortakoy, the Istanbul area where the nightclub is situated, club manager Mehmet Kocarslan said in a statement on Reina’s website.
The coast guard on the Bosporus had already taken the necessary precautions, the manager added. “Despite all the measures from our security forces, this regrettable incident still took place,” Kocarslan said, condemning what he described as a “terrorist attack on humanity, our nation and our peace.”
Like other cities across the globe, Istanbul had ramped up security in preparation for New Year’s Eve celebrations. Turkey has suffered a string of attacks over the past year, including a double suicide bombing at an Istanbul football stadium three weeks ago which killed more than 40.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said he would not allow terrorists to unleash “chaos” in Turkey following the latest bloodshed. Meanwhile, opposition leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu slammed the government’s counterterrorism measures as misguided.
“The reason for this situation is that the government has no rational, quantified, sustainable and national anti-terror policies,” Kilicdaroglu wrote on the website of the centre-left People’s Republican Party (CHP), adding that Ankara was not adequately protecting citizens.
–dpa
