US President Barack Obama expressed on Sunday his condolences over the terror attack on the Reina nightclub in the Turkish city of Istanbul, White House spokesman Eric Schultz said.
“The president expressed condolences for the innocent lives lost, directed his team to offer appropriate assistance to the Turkish authorities, as necessary, and keep him updated as warranted,” Schultz said, as quoted by The Guardian.
Deputy spokesman of US State Department Mark Toner echoed Obama having expressed solidarity with Turkey.
“We stand in solidarity with our NATO ally Turkey in combating the ongoing threat of terrorism. Sadly, this heinous attack is only the latest effort to kill and maim innocent civilians. These attacks only reinforce our determination to work with the government of Turkey to counter the scourge of terrorism,” he said.
The nightclub Reina in the Besiktas district was reportedly attacked by a man in a Santa Claus costume, who was speaking Arabic. The attacker is said to have opened fire from a Kalashnikov assault rifle. According to media reports, the terrorist was killed.
According to Vasip Sahin, governor of the Istanbul province, at least 35 people were killed and 40 injured as a result of the attack.
