24 Foreigners Among Istanbul Victims, Attacker Still at Large

Turkish authorities say 24 foreign nationals were among the 39 people killed in a New Year’s Eve attack on a popular Istanbul nightclub early Sunday. The attack took place shortly after 1 a.m., when an attacker stormed in and began firing at partygoers with what Istanbul Governor Vasip Sahin described as some kind of assault rifle. In addition to those killed, 69 people are currently being treated at Turkish hospitals for their injuries, with four of them in critical condition. The Israeli foreign ministry has identified one of the victims as a 19-year-old Israeli woman from the town of Tira. Turkish Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu said the other foreign nationals were Moroccan, Saudi Arabian, Lebanese and Libyan, though he stopped short of releasing any further details, the Guardian reported. The identification of the victims comes as Soylu refutes earlier reports of the attacker being caught, saying the attacker is still at large and a manhunt is ongoing. While initial reports said there were multiple attackers, authorities now say they are seeking a single attacker. The search coincided with the first funeral for one of the victims, Ayhan Arik, who reportedly drove foreign tourists to the Reina nightclub where the massacre took place. As the nation’s holiday festivities quickly turned into mourning on Sunday, President Tayyip Erdogan vowed to “fight to the end” against terrorism, and “against their economic, political and social attacks.”