Terrorist Attack at Istanbul Nightclub Kills Dozens - New York Times
No one had claimed responsibility for the mass shooting, which came as threats against Turkey by the Islamic State and its supporters have increased. It was the fourth terrorist attack in Turkey in less than a month.
Attack on Istanbul Nightclub
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Prime Minister Binali Yildirim told reporters that the authorities did not yet have hard evidence on who was behind the attack. “Some details have started emerging, but the authorities are working towards a concrete result,” he said. He denied widespread accounts that the gunman might have been dressed in a Santa Claus outfit, saying: “There is no truth to this. He is an armed terrorist as we know it.”
But a senior United States official said on Sunday that the emerging assessment of both American and Turkish authorities was that the Islamic State was responsible for the attack or at least inspired the gunman who went on the shooting rampage.
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey said that terrorists were trying to break the will of the people.
“They are working to destroy our country’s morale and create chaos by deliberately targeting our nation’s peace and targeting civilians with these heinous attacks,” he said in a statement. “We will retain our coolheadedness as a nation, standing more closely together, and we will never give ground to such dirty games.”
He added, “Turkey is determined to continue to fight to the end against terror and to do whatever is necessary to ensure the security of its citizens and secure peace in the region.”
Gov. Vasip Sahin of Istanbul Province said a police officer outside the club had been killed before the bloodshed began inside.
“One person first kills the police officer outside, and then a civilian,” Mr. Sahin said. “Inside, he rained bullets brutally, mercilessly over innocent people who were there just to celebrate the New Year and have fun.”
In the ensuing panic and the rush to escape, some clubgoers jumped into the Bosporus — which separates Europe and Asia — and others hunkered down for safety.
Sinem Uyanik, who was there with her husband, Lutfu Uyanik, told The Associated Press that she had seen several bodies inside the club. Her husband was wounded, she added, but not seriously.
“Before I could understand what was happening, my husband fell on top me,” she said. “I had to lift several bodies from on top of me before I could get out.”
A wounded man on a stretcher told the independent Turkish news agency DHA that the attacker had “put a bullet to the head of anyone alive.”
Television footage showed dozens of ambulances rushing to the scene and people fleeing, some walking with difficulty, arm in arm.
Timeline
Recent Terrorist Attacks in Turkey
A timeline of recent terrorist attacks in Turkey.
The owner of Reina, Mehmet Kocarslan, told the Hurriyet news site that security measures had been increased over the past 10 days after American intelligence officials had warned about an attack in Turkey over the holidays.
Emre Eytan Can, 34, an investment banker from Istanbul, said the Reina was a go-to weekend destination, especially in the summer.
“It’s open air, on the water, and it’s central enough for everyone to get to easily,” he said. “People can pull up by car or boat.”
He said he had always loved going there, and added: “It’s a carefree place, and even in this environment, I would never imagine a terrorist attack taking place there because of security. But I guess it is a target because it’s full of high-class Turks and foreigners. And it’s a place where people let their hair down and drink, which is not in line with Islam.”
The shooting came days after the Nashir Media Foundation, a group identified by experts as supporting the Islamic State, published the last of three messages calling on individual attackers in the West to turn the holiday season into days of “terror and blood.” It urged attacks on clubs, markets and movie theaters.
Nashir Media singled out Turkey in its threats. “Attack the embassies and consulates of Turkey and all coalition countries where you are,” the message said. “Turn their happiness and joy into grieves,” it went on in garbled English, “and their feasts into funerals.”
Seeking the Istanbul Nightclub Gunman
On Sunday, Turkish officials revealed latest information about the attacker who shot scores of people at an Istanbul nightclub on New Year's Eve and remains on the loose, and said police were doing everything to find him.
By REUTERS.
Photo by Reuters...
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In addition, there have been numerous official threats by the Islamic State, including from its leader, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, who in his most recent speech called for attacks against Turkey.
On Dec. 22, the United States government said in a statement that extremist groups were “continuing aggressive efforts to conduct attacks throughout Turkey” in areas where American citizens and expatriates lived or visited. The statement urged caution about being in crowded places and public gatherings during the holidays.
A White House official said President Obama had been briefed by his national security advisers about the nightclub attack. Mr. Obama expressed his condolences and offered assistance to the Turkish authorities.
“We stand in solidarity with our NATO ally Turkey in combating the ongoing threat of terrorism,” Mark C. Toner, the deputy spokesman for the State Department, said in a statement.
The attack drew condemnation from world leaders.
Pope Francis prayed for the victims in the attack, for those injured and for “the whole nation in mourning” during his weekly address on Sunday at St. Peter’s Square in Vatican City. Expressing his “closeness to the Turkish people,” the pope asked “the Lord to support all people of good will who roll up their sleeves to boldly tackle the scourge of terrorism and this stain of blood that envelops the world with a shadow of fear and bewilderment.”
Turkey is still dealing with the aftershocks of a coup attempt that began July 15, in which at least 265 people were killed.
Though the effort sputtered in a matter of hours, Mr. Erdogan responded with a crackdown targeting dissidents across Turkish society. In addition to arresting thousands of military personnel suspected of involvement in the coup, hundreds of thousands of civil servants, educational workers and journalists have been suspended.
The coup and the assassination of Ambassador Andrey G. Karlov of Russia in Ankara on Dec. 19 raised concerns that the country’s security establishment has grown ineffective. The internal turmoil also raised doubts about how well Turkey can participate in international counterterrorism efforts, especially against the Islamic State.
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