The Istanbul nightclub shooting (also known as Reina massacre in Turkey) was a mass shooting incident on 1 January 2017 around 01:15 am local time, in which a terrorist shot and killed 39 people and wounded 79 others at the Reina nightclub in the
Ortaköy
Ortaköy ( ''Middle Village)'' is a neighbourhood within the Beşiktaş district of Istanbul, Turkey, on the European shore of the Bosphorus. it was originally a small fishing village, known in Greek as Agios Fokas (Άγιος Φωκάς) in t ...
neighbourhood of
Istanbul
)
, postal_code_type = Postal code
, postal_code = 34000 to 34990
, area_code = +90 212 (European side) +90 216 (Asian side)
, registration_plate = 34
, blank_name_sec2 = GeoTLD
, blank_i ...
,
Turkey
Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with a small portion on the Balkan Peninsula in ...
, where hundreds had been celebrating
New Year's Day.
Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan (, ; uz, Ozbekiston, italic=yes / , ; russian: Узбекистан), officially the Republic of Uzbekistan ( uz, Ozbekiston Respublikasi, italic=yes / ; russian: Республика Узбекистан), is a doubly landlocked co ...
-born Abdulkadir Masharipov was arrested in Istanbul on 17 January 2017.
Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant
An Islamic state is a state that has a form of government based on Islamic law (sharia). As a term, it has been used to describe various historical polities and theories of governance in the Islamic world. As a translation of the Arabic term ...
claimed credit for his actions. The first hearing in the trial of Masharipov and 51 accused
accomplice
Under the English common law, an accomplice is a person who actively participates in the commission of a crime, even if they take no part in the actual criminal offense. For example, in a bank robbery, the person who points the gun at the teller ...
s was held on 11 December 2017,
and the next hearing was held on 26 March 2018.
Background
From the 2016 northern summer,
the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) had been under pressure and had sustained significant territorial losses due to three parallel offensives: the Turkish-
Free Syrian Army Western al-Bab offensive and
Battle of al-Bab
The Battle of al-Bab was a battle for the city of al-Bab in the Aleppo Governorate that included a military offensive launched by Syrian rebel groups (including groups affiliated with the Free Syrian Army) and the Turkish Armed Forces north of al ...
, the
Syrian Democratic Forces'
Northern Raqqa offensive, and the
Battle of Mosul in
Iraq
Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to the north, Iran to the east, the Persian Gulf and K ...
. The
Turkish military intervention in Syria was the first military confrontation between ISIL and the
Turkish Army
The Turkish Land Forces ( tr, Türk Kara Kuvvetleri), or Turkish Army (Turkish: ), is the main branch of the Turkish Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. The army was formed on November 8, 1920, after the collapse of the ...
, raising tensions.
Before the nightclub attack, heightened security measures had been put in place in Istanbul, with 17,000 police officers on duty,
following several attacks in the area,
including the
attack on the Istanbul Atatürk Airport on 28 June 2016 which killed 48 people, and a
bombing at the Vodafone Arena on 10 December 2016 which killed 46.
Attack
A terrorist
opened fire in the nightclub at approximately 01:15. He reportedly carried an
AKM
The AKM () is an assault rifle designed by Soviet small arms designer Mikhail Kalashnikov in 1959. It is the most ubiquitous rifle of the Kalashnikov rifles. It was developed as a replacement to the AK-47 introduced a decade prior.
Introduc ...
rifle; after killing a police officer and a bystander at the entrance he entered the club shooting, allegedly dressed up as
Santa Claus.
The assailant reportedly spoke
Arabic
Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C. E.Watson; Walter ...
during the attack and shouted the Arabic phrase "''
Allāhu akbar''".
He reportedly fired more than 180 rounds during the seven-minute incident, using
stun grenade
A stun grenade, also known as a flash grenade, flashbang, thunderflash, or sound bomb, is a less-lethal explosive device used to temporarily disorient an enemy's senses. Upon detonation, they produce a blinding flash of light and an extremely lo ...
s to aid in reloading his weapon.
After the assault, he went into the kitchen, changed his clothes, and escaped by blending in with the crowd.
At the time of the attack, about 600 people
were at the nightclub to celebrate the New Year.
39 people were killed, including the police officer on duty at the club entrance,
and at least 79 others were injured.
A number of people jumped into the waters of the
Bosphorus strait to escape the attack.
In the aftermath, police set up a cordon around the nightclub.
Aftermath
Istanbul's governor
Vasip Şahin said the incident was a
terrorist
Terrorism, in its broadest sense, is the use of criminal violence to provoke a state of terror or fear, mostly with the intention to achieve political or religious aims. The term is used in this regard primarily to refer to intentional violen ...
attack.
The Turkish government ordered a
temporary media blackout, citing concerns over security and public order.
In response to the attack, the
Turkish military
The Turkish Armed Forces (TAF; tr, Türk Silahlı Kuvvetleri, TSK) are the armed forces, military forces of the Turkey, Republic of Turkey. Turkish Armed Forces consist of the General Staff of the Turkish Armed Forces, General Staff, the Turki ...
carried out attacks against ISIL targets in the
Syrian town of
al-Bab. 22 people are claimed to have been killed in the raids.
Seven Uyghur restaurant workers were arrested by police in
Zeytinburnu
Zeytinburnu (literally, ''Olive Cape'') is a working-class neighbourhood, municipality (belediye) and district on the European side of Istanbul, Turkey, on the shore of the Marmara Sea just outside the walls of the ancient city, beyond the fortres ...
, which became the site of over 50 police sweeps against "East Turkistanis" (
Uyghurs
The Uyghurs; ; ; ; zh, s=, t=, p=Wéiwú'ěr, IPA: ( ), alternatively spelled Uighurs, Uygurs or Uigurs, are a Turkic ethnic group originating from and culturally affiliated with the general region of Central and East Asia. The Uyghur ...
),
Kazakhs,
Kyrgyz, and
Uzbeks
The Uzbeks ( uz, , , , ) are a Turkic ethnic group native to the wider Central Asian region, being among the largest Turkic ethnic group in the area. They comprise the majority population of Uzbekistan, next to Kazakh and Karakalpak mino ...
, a number of Uyghurs were detained outside of Istanbul in
Selimpaşa, and altogether up to 36 people were detained in connection with the investigation in the days following the attack. It has been alleged that
Kyrgyzstan passports were used by several families allegedly from
East Turkestan
East Turkestan ( ug, شەرقىي تۈركىستان, Sherqiy Türkistan, bold=no; zh, s=东突厥斯坦; also spelled East Turkistan), is a loosely-defined geographical and historical region in the western provinces of the People's Republic of ...
with 20 children, and 22 women and men, all of whom were among 40 arrested by Turkish security forces in İzmir's Bornova and Buca districts. Weapons were found with the İzmir suspects. Syrians, Uyghurs, and Dagestanis were arrested in Izmir.
Perpetrator
On 9 January 2017, Turkish police identified the suspected Terrorist as an Uzbek national, Abdulkadir Masharipov (
Uzbek Cyrillic: Абдул-Кадир Машарипов; born 2 August 1988), who also goes by the name Abu Muhammed Horasani. He was arrested on 16 January at a Kyrgyz friend's apartment in the
Esenyurt
Esenyurt () is a district of the Istanbul Province and is a part of the metropolitan municipality of Istanbul. Located in the European side of Istanbul, Esenyurt borders with Avcılar and Lake Küçükçekmece on the east, Büyükçekmece on th ...
district of Istanbul. Firearms, ammunition, two drones and about $200,000 were found in the apartment.
Masharipov was 28 years old at the time of the attack and is believed to have been trained as a militant in
Afghanistan
Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...
and
Pakistan
Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 243 million people, and has the world's second-lar ...
before illegally entering Turkey through the Iranian border in January 2016.
Masharipov is also believed to have trained with
Al Qaeda in Iraq, the group that morphed into ISIL, and had spent most of his time in Turkey in the city of
Konya
Konya () is a major city in central Turkey, on the southwestern edge of the Central Anatolian Plateau, and is the capital of Konya Province. During antiquity and into Seljuk times it was known as Iconium (), although the Seljuks also called it ...
before arriving in Istanbul on 16 December 2016.
In an interview with police, Masharipov stated he was initially directed by ISIL to stage an attack at
Taksim Square
Taksim Square ( tr, Taksim Meydanı, ), situated in Beyoğlu in the European part of Istanbul, Turkey, is a major tourist and leisure district famed for its restaurants, shops, and hotels. It is considered the heart of modern Istanbul, with the c ...
, but dropped the plan after conducting surveillance of the area and concluding there was too much security. Afterward, Masharipov passed the Reina and decided it would be a good target to attack due to a lack of security.
In September 2020, a Turkish court sentenced Masharipov to
life imprisonment, plus an additional 1,368 years in prison, for killing 39 people and injuring 79 more. In his last testimony, he requested that he be exonerated, saying his original statements were under "torture and pressure". He said there was inadequate evidence against him. It is anticipated he will appeal the verdict.
On 10 December 2021, another suspect linked to the 2017 attack was detained in police custody in
Bishkek,
Kyrgyzstan
Kyrgyzstan,, pronounced or the Kyrgyz Republic, is a landlocked country in Central Asia. Kyrgyzstan is bordered by Kazakhstan to the north, Uzbekistan to the west, Tajikistan to the south, and the People's Republic of China to the ea ...
.
Victims
Among the victims were people from 14 countries, including
Bollywood
Hindi cinema, popularly known as Bollywood and formerly as Bombay cinema, refers to the film industry based in Mumbai, engaged in production of motion pictures in Hindi language. The popular term Bollywood, is a portmanteau of "Bombay" (fo ...
film producer Abis Rizvi, producer of the 2014 film ''
Roar: Tigers of the Sundarbans''.
Reactions
Vasip Şahin, the governor of Istanbul, described the attack as a "violent and cruel act of terror"
and said that the attacker had used a "long-range weapon" to "brutally and savagely" fire on people, referring to a type of
assault rifle.
The
President of Turkey
The president of Turkey, officially the president of the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti Cumhurbaşkanı), is the head of state and head of government of Turkey. The president directs the executive branch of the national govern ...
Recep Tayyip Erdoğan condemned the attack and offered condolences on behalf of those who died, including victims from other countries.
Many world leaders and officials condemned the attack, offering condolences.
Conspiracy theories
The US embassy denied social media rumours that it had prior intelligence of the attack.
Some Turkish citizens, journalists, and pro-AKP journals such as ''Sabah
Sabah () is a state of Malaysia located in northern Borneo, in the region of East Malaysia. Sabah borders the Malaysian state of Sarawak to the southwest and the North Kalimantan province of Indonesia to the south. The Federal Territory o ...
'' put forward conspiracy theories, claiming that agencies from Western countries
The Western world, also known as the West, primarily refers to the various nations and states in the regions of Europe, North America, and Oceania. , such as the CIA
The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA ), known informally as the Agency and historically as the Company, is a civilian foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States, officially tasked with gathering, processing, ...
, organized the attack.
''Doğu Türkistan Bülteni Haber Ajansı'', which is the Turkish mouthpiece of the Uyghur group Turkistan Islamic Party
The Turkistan Islamic Party (TIP) or the Turkistan Islamic Movement (TIM), formerly known as the East Turkestan Islamic Movement (ETIM) and other names, is a Uyghur Islamic extremist organization founded in Western China. Its stated goals ar ...
(TIP) complained about the Reina massacre suspect being named as Uyghur by Veysi Kaynak, the Deputy Prime Minister, blaming Fethullah Gülen
Muhammed Fethullah Gülen (born 27 April 1941) is a Turkish Islamic scholar, preacher, and a one-time opinion leader, as de facto leader of the Gülen movement. Gülen is designated an influential neo-Ottomanist, Anatolian panethnicist, Isl ...
and his movement for the attack. ''Doğu Türkistan Bülteni Haber Ajansı'', speaking on behalf of the TIP, pledged its animosity against Russia and the PKK
The Kurdistan Workers' Party or PKK is a Kurdish militant political organization and armed guerrilla movement, which historically operated throughout Kurdistan, but is now primarily based in the mountainous Kurdish-majority regions of sout ...
, saying it fought them alongside Turkmen in Syria for six years, denying involvement in the Reina nightclub massacre and trying to blame China for the massacre
A massacre is the killing of a large number of people or animals, especially those who are not involved in any fighting or have no way of defending themselves. A massacre is generally considered to be morally unacceptable, especially when per ...
, claiming that Uyghurs in Küçükçekmece
Küçükçekmece (; meaning “small-drawer”, from much earlier ''Rhagion'' and ''Küçükçökmece as “little breakdown''" or “''little depression''”, in more ancient times just as Bathonea), is a suburb and district of Istanbul, Turke ...
and Zeytinburnu
Zeytinburnu (literally, ''Olive Cape'') is a working-class neighbourhood, municipality (belediye) and district on the European side of Istanbul, Turkey, on the shore of the Marmara Sea just outside the walls of the ancient city, beyond the fortres ...
were being unfairly targeted. ''Doğu Türkistan Bülteni Haber Ajansı'' and Zeytinburnu Uyghurs blamed the Gülen movement for the Reina nightclub massacre.
See also
* Orlando nightclub shooting
On , 2016, Omar Mateen, a 29-year-old man, killed 49 people and wounded 53 more in a mass shooting at Pulse, a gay nightclub in Orlando, Florida, United States. Orlando Police officers shot and killed him after a three-hour standoff.
In a ...
* 2015 New Year's attack plots
* List of massacres in Turkey
The following is a list of massacres that occurred in Turkey (numbers may be approximate, as estimates vary greatly):
Antiquity
Middle Ages
Ottoman Empire
Before 1914
World War I (1914–1918)
Post-World War I (1919–1923)
Republic ...
* List of terrorist incidents in January 2017
* Terrorism in Europe
* List of rampage killers (religious, political, or ethnic crimes)
* Suruç bombing
* Terrorism in Turkey
* 2015 Diyarbakır rally bombings
The 2015 Diyarbakır rally bombings occurred on 5 June 2015 in Diyarbakır, Turkey, during an electoral rally of the Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) at 17:55 local time. The bombing took place two days before the June 2015 general election and ...
* Turkey–ISIL conflict
The IS-related terrorist attacks in Turkey refers to a series of attacks and clashes between Turkey and the Islamic State (IS) as part of the spillover of the Syrian Civil War. Turkey joined the international military intervention against the Is ...
* Spillover of the Syrian civil war
References
{{Islamic terrorism in Europe
Nightclub shooting
2017 mass shootings in Europe
2017 murders in Europe
Nightclub shooting
2017 murders in Turkey
21st-century mass murder in Turkey
Attacks during the New Year celebrations
Attacks on buildings and structures in 2017
Nightclub shooting
Attacks on nightclubs
Beşiktaş
ISIL terrorist incidents in Turkey
Nightclub shooting
Islamic terrorist incidents in 2017
January 2017 crimes in Europe
January 2017 events in Turkey
Massacres in 2017
Massacres in Turkey
Nightclub shooting
Mass shootings in Turkey
Nightclub shooting
Terrorist incidents in Turkey in 2017
Attacks in Turkey in 2017