AFP, Jan. 3, 2017 – The Islamic State (IS) group claimed responsibility on Monday for a gun attack on New Year’s Eve revelers at an Istanbul nightclub that killed 39 people and wounded close to 70 more as Turkish police struggled to track down the gunman.
A statement issued by the IS group said that the New Year’s attack was carried out by a “heroic soldier of the caliphate who attacked the most famous nightclub where Christians were celebrating their pagan feast”. It added that the attack was “in revenge for God’s religion and in response to the orders” of IS group leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.
The attacker, armed with a long-barrelled weapon, killed a policeman and a civilian outside the Reina club around 1:15 am Sunday before entering and firing at people partying inside, Istanbul Governor Vasip Sahin said.
“Unfortunately, [he] rained bullets in a very cruel and merciless way on innocent people who were there to celebrate New Year’s and have fun,” Sahin told reporters.
Turkey’s state-run news agency said Monday that police had detained eight people in connection with the Istanbul nightclub attack but that the gunman was not among them.
Nearly two-thirds of the people killed were foreigners, many from the Middle East, the Anadolu Agency said. It said the bodies of 25 foreign nationals killed in the attack would be delivered to their families Monday.
Official sources from Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Iraq, Lebanon, Tunisia, India, Morocco, Israel, Belgium, Libya, Canada, and Kuwait have confirmed casualties among their respective nationals.
An estimated 600 people were celebrating inside the club, which is often frequented by famous locals, including singers, actors, and sports stars. Several shocked revelers were seen fleeing the scene after the shooting and the music fell silent.
The mass shooting followed more than 30 violent acts over the past year in Turkey, which is a member of the NATO alliance and a partner in the US-led coalition fighting against the IS group in Syria and Iraq. The country endured multiple bombings in 2016, including three in Istanbul alone that authorities blamed on the IS group, a failed coup attempt in July and renewed conflict with Kurdish rebels in the southeast.