The Turkish government has identified the attacker at an Istanbul nightclub that left 39 people dead and 70 others wounded, according to its foreign minister. Five suspected members of ISIS terror group were already arrested in relation to the attack after it claimed responsibility for the New Year's Eve shooting. The gunman, however, remains at large.
In an interview over Turkish TV Anadolu, foreign minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said Turkish authorities have already secured the records and fingerprints of the suspect. Although the investigators earlier released photos of the suspect, the Turkish officials did not name the gunman.
"The identity of the person carrying out the attack in Ortakoy has been determined," he said.
A separate report claimed that the suspect may have trained in Syria and an expert in guerilla warfare. It said that he entered Turkey from Syria and went to the central city of Konya in November. He is traveling with his wife and two children to avoid detection.
As of this posting, police detained nearly 30 people as part of its manhunt operation against the suspect including two foreign nationals. Most of the fatalities of the attack were foreigners from Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Israel, and Syria.
