The United Arab Emirates, America, New Zealand, United Kingdom, Australia and other countries have raised travel warnings for tourists planning to journey or are currently in Turkey. After a nightclub shootout in the capital of Istanbul, the countries have issued statements to postpone travel for travelers with booked flights and itineraries and warned citizens in the country to remain vigilant and fly out of the country at the soonest possible time.
According to Fox News, the UAE had issued its statement on Tuesday night. In a short statement in Arabic, all UAE travelers to Turkey are requested to postpone their travel plans "until further notice." In their respective foreign travel websites, the United States, United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Denmark and other European countries have cautioned would-be travelers to remain vigilant during their travels and asked citizens already in Turkey to stay away from public gatherings and popular tourist spots likely to be targeted by criminals.
The Turkish government is presently on a manhunt to find the gunman who had opened fire inside popular tourist nightclub Reina in Istanbul. According to Express UK, the gunman went on a rampage during New Year's Eve killing 39 people and injuring 69 other individuals. The news website added that the UK's Foreign and Commonwealth Office warns tourists only to stay away from Turkish parts near the Syrian border.
The militant group Islamic State had claimed the attack as one of their own. Authorities believe the attacker was well-trained in guerrilla warfare and may have trained in Syria -- currently the central operating area of the militant group. The official Islamic State statement said the Reina nightclub in Istanbul was a gathering point for Christians and the act was "revenge for Turkish military involvement in Syria."
Currently, Turkish authorities have two photographs of the gunman. The photographs revealed him to have no facial hair, black-haired and wearing a dark winter coat. Despite the Islamic State's claims, Turkey did not mention any specific terrorist group during its statement that it would "fight against terrorism."
