2017 Istanbul nightclub shooting suspect gets 40-plus life terms

Istanbul, Sep 8 (IANS) A Turkish court handed down 40 aggravated life sentences plus over 1,300 years to the gunman in the 2017 New Years attack on an Istanbul nightclub that killed 39 people.

On Monday, Istanbul's Heavy Penal Court No. 27 sentenced Uzbek national Abdulkadir Masharipov for violating the Constitution and the deliberate killing of 39 people, including a police officer, reports Anadolu News Agency.

Masharipov was also sentenced to 1,368 years in prison for the attempted murder of 79 people and violating firearms law.

In addition, Ilyas Mamasaripov, who faced charges over being one of the planners of the terrorist attack and helping the main gunman, was sentenced to 1,432 years in prison for aiding the attack, among other offenses.

At least 39 people, including a police officer, were killed when the gunman opened fire on New Year's Eve partygoers at the Reina nightclub in Istanbul's Ortakoy district in the early hours of January 1, 2017.

The fatalities included 27 foreigners, and 79 people were wounded.

The assailant, who was captured at a police operation two weeks after the attack, said he acted on behalf of the Islamic State (IS) terror group.

The IS has been blamed for a spate of deadly attacks over the years in Turkey, in which more than 300 people were killed.