WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — Turkey was a target of numerous terrorist attacks involving shootings, suicide bombings, and vehicle-borne bombings in tourist areas and public spaces in 2016, with one of the most recent attack including a mass shooting at the Istanbul Reina nightclub on January 1, 2017.
"We can confirm that on April 6, Abdurrahman Uzbeki, an ISIS [Daesh] operative was killed by US forces… He facilitated the movement of ISIS foreign fighters and funds and he also played a key role in ISIS's external terror attack plotting," Thomas told reporters.
"He facilitated the high-profile attack on a night club in Istanbul on New Year's Eve."
Thomas noted that Uzbeki was a close associate of Daesh leader Abu Bakr Al Baghdadi.
In January, the Turkish media reported that the country's law enforcement agencies had information about alleged involvement of either an Uzbek or a Kyrgyz national in the attack.
