Reina attack: Police arrest main suspect

A good two weeks after the attack on Istanbul's Reina nightclub the Turkish police have arrested the presumed killer. The man, believed to be an IS fighter from Uzbekistan, was arrested in the flat of a friend in Istanbul. The Turkish press is both relieved and concerned.

Open/close all quotes
Milliyet (TR) /

Open borders have promoted terrorism

The large number of house searches during the manhunt worries Milliyet:

“152 buildings with connections to terrorism. How many more are there? This is alarming. 50 people were arrested. 168 foreigners who were unregistered or carrying fake identity cards were detained on suspicion of terrorism. How many hundreds of illegal immigrants are there? For a while we had a policy of open borders, and we were proud of it. But no one knew who was coming or going over our borders because it wasn't being recorded. Dozens of foreign fighters from Afghanistan, Chechnya, Pakistan, France and Belgium travelled via Turkey to Syria. ... At the same time thousands of people entered our country anonymously. ... Their identities and goals are unclear. The Reina attack has brought these circumstances to light.”

Star (TR) /

Turkey exemplary in the fight against terror

The arrest of the Reina attacker will have enormous psychological repercussions, the pro-government daily Star is convinced:

“The numerous terrorist attacks at the end of 2016 created a gloomy atmosphere in the country. And the fact that despite extensive security measures and many foiled attacks, strikes causing many casualties were carried out in rapid succession caused many people to question the level of security. ... Even Western capitals have been hit by terrorism. The IS has struck in Paris, Brussels, and Berlin. ... But never has an IS attacker been taken alive [sic]. ... The arrest of the Reina attacker doesn't mean that the IS won't plan further attacks in Turkey. ... As long as Turkey continues to make progress against the organisation in Syria, its motivation to carry out attacks will only grow stronger. But as in the fight against the PKK terror, Turkey has made huge strides in the fight against the IS.”