2 Indians among 39 killed in Istanbul terror attack

Reports say that the attackers was dressed in a Santa Claus costume. The attack took place at the Reina nightclub, in the Ortakoy area, at about 01:30 local time.

Istanbul, Jan 1: At least 39 people were killed and 40 others injured in an attack on a nightclub in Istanbul. India's External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj said two of the 39 killed were Indians.

The two Indians have been identified as Abis Rizvi, son of former Rajya Sabha MP and Khushi Shah from Gujarat.

Reports say that the attackers was dressed in a Santa Claus costume. The attack took place at the Reina nightclub, in the Ortakoy area, at about 01:30 local time.

Several hundred people in the nightclub at the time, some of whom are believed to have jumped into the Bosphorus to escape. Authorities confirmed that it was a terror attack.
Istanbul had been on high alert with 17,000 police officers on duty in the city. The city which has been a target of the Islamic State has been on very high alert since the past one year.

Less than a fortnight ago, the Russian ambassador, Andrei Karlov, was shot dead by off-duty Turkish policeman Mevlut Mert Altintas as he gave a speech in the capital Ankara in December.

After the shooting, the killer shouted the murder was in revenge for Russian involvement in the conflict in the Syrian city of Aleppo.

OneIndia News