The bodies of four Saudis who were slain in the attack on an Istanbul nightclub were returned home as the Kingdom reels from the loss of its citizens at the hands of Daesh terrorists abroad.
The attack killed seven Saudis and 39 total from 14 countries.
Included in the four dead returning to the Kingdom today were twin brothers, Mohammed and Ahmed Saud Al-Fadl.
According to the Saudi Gazette, the Saudi consulate in Istanbul is making arrangements to repatriate the bodies of the remaining three Saudis who were killed in the armed attack in Istanbul on Sunday night.
The attack has spurred an outpouring of grief and outrage from Saudis on social media sites and in online publications.
والد #شهد_سمان أثناء وصول جثة ابنته بعد وفاتها في الحادثة الإرهابية بمطعم رينا في مدينة #اسطنبول. pic.twitter.com/tsGFPAel7p
— Abdulsalam 🇹🇷✌🙏 (@sloom_sg) January 4, 2017
One of the victims from Saudi Arabia, Lubna Ghasnawi, was a 34-year-old entrepreneur. A friend of Ghasnawi told CNN that she “was an optimist and loved going to new places. … Laughter and happiness filled whatever place she went to…She was very ambitious and inspiring.”
Shahad Abdul Karim Samman, a 26-year-old Saudi woman who died in the attack, was waiting to take up her job as a lawyer with Saudi Arabian Airlines (Saudia), according to her brother Sulaiman.
Saudi Arabia’s King Salman harshly condemned the attack on the nightclub and expressed his condolences in a cable to his Turkish counterpart, saying “We have received with deep sorrow the news of the armed attack in Istanbul which resulted in deaths and injuries. We strongly condemn this cowardly terrorist act and stress the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s standing with the Republic of Turkey and its people against anyone who tries to undermine its security and stability. We, in my name and on behalf of the Government and the people of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, offer our condolences to Your Excellency, the brotherly people of the Republic of Turkey and the families of the victims, wishing the injured a speedy recovery. ”
Meanwhile, Turkey’s foreign minister says officials know the identity of a gunman who carried out the Istanbul nightclub attack on New Year’s Eve but he has stopped short of naming him, according to the BBC, which noted that Turkey is under growing pressure to find the gunman who remains at large.
