The Latest on the arrest of Istanbul nightclub gunman (all times local):
10:55 a.m.
Istanbul’s governor says that the New Year’s nightclub attack that killed 39 people was executed on behalf of the Islamic State group.
Vasip Sahin told reporters that “It is clear that this was carried out in the name of Daesh. ” He was using an Arabic acronym for the militant group.
Sahin also confirmed the identity of the suspected gunman, who is now in custody and being questioned, saying he is an Uzbekistan national who had trained in Afghanistan.
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10:45 a.m.
Istanbul’s governor says that the captured nightclub attack suspect is an Uzbekistan national who trained in Afghanistan.
Gov. Vasip Sahin says that the gunman who carried out the New Year’s attack is believed to have entered Turkey in January 2016.
Sahin says the suspect, captured late Monday, has confessed to carrying out the massacre, in which 39 people were killed. The governor says that the suspect’s fingerprints matched those of the attacker.
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10:35 a.m.
Turkey’s prime minister has confirmed that the gunman who carried out the deadly New Year’s attack on an Istanbul nightclub has been detained.
Binali Yildirim told reporters in Ankara on Tuesday that the man was being questioned by police and expressed hope that the interrogation would unveil the “forces” behind the attack, which killed 39 people.
He wouldn’t provide further details on the arrest or the investigation, saying authorities would provide details “in time. ”
Yildirim said that “the vile terrorist who attacked the place of entertainment on New Year’s eve and led to the loss of so many lives has been captured. ”
He added: “What is important is for the suspect to be captured and for the power the forces behind it to be revealed. ”
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8:55 a.m.
Turkish media reports say police in Istanbul have begun questioning a suspected Islamic State militant accused of killing 39 people during a New Year’s attack on an Istanbul nightclub.
The gunman, which media reports identified as Uzbekistan national Abdulgadir Masharipov, was caught late Monday in a police operation at a luxury residential complex in Istanbul. The state-run Anadolu Agency said a man from Kyrgyzstan and three women — from Somalia, Senegal and Egypt — were detained in the raid, while his 4-year old son was taken under protective custody.
Private NTV television said Masharipov was being questioned at Istanbul’s police headquarters on Tuesday.
Anadolu said police have also carried out raids on members of a suspected Uzbek IS cell in five Istanbul neighborhoods, and detained several people.
