IS claims responsibility for Istanbul nightclub attack

[BEIRUT] The Islamic State group on Monday claimed responsibility for an attack on a nightclub in the Turkish city of Istanbul that killed 39 people on New Year's Eve.

In a statement circulated on social media, the jihadist group said one of the "soldiers of the caliphate" had carried out the attack on the Reina nightclub.

Turkey was on Monday hunting the gunman who opened fire inside the glamorous Istanbul nightclub on New Year's night. Arriving by taxi at the plush Reina nightclub on the shores of the Bosphorus, the gunman produced a weapon, reportedly a Kalashnikov, and shot dead a policeman and civilian at the entrance.

According to the Hurriyet daily, the gunman then fired four magazines containing a total of 120 bullets around the club, as terrified guests flung themselves into the freezing waters of the Bosphorus in panic.

But after changing clothes, the gunman left the nightclub and has managed to evade the security forces.

Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu said Sunday that intense efforts were under way to find the gunman, and expressed hope that the suspect would be captured soon.

Late on Sunday, police rushed to the city's Kurucesme district after a tip-off but the operation did not produce any arrest.

AFP