Istanbul governor says at least 35 killed in Istanbul nightclub attack

An armoured police vehicle blocks a road leads to a nightclub where a gun attack took place during a New Year party in Istanbul, Turkey, January 1, 2017.

Police secure area near an Istanbul nightclub, Turkey, January 1, 2017.

An injured woman is carried to an ambulance from a nightclub where a gun attack took place during a New Year party in Istanbul, Turkey, January 1, 2017.

UPDATE:

At least 35 people were killed and 40 wounded when an attacker opened fire on New Year's revelers at a nightclub in Istanbul on Sunday, Istanbul Governor Vasip Sahin told reporters.

The attacker shot a police officer and a civilian as he entered the club in the Ortakoy district of Istanbul before opening fire inside the building, Sahin said, in what he described as a terrorist attack.

EARLIER:

ISTANBUL, Jan 1 (Reuters) - At least one attacker opened fire at an Istanbul nightclub packed with people celebrating the New Year early on Sunday, wounding as many as 20 or 30 people, broadcaster NTV said.

Dozens of ambulances and police vehicles were dispatched to the club in the Ortakoy district of Turkey's most populous city. Initial reports suggested there may have been two attackers, but an NTV reporter later said it may have been a lone assailant.

Broadcaster CNN Turk initially said the attacker was thought still to be inside the building and that police special forces were preparing to raid it. NTV said the attacker's whereabouts were unclear.

The nightclub lies on the European side of the Bosphorus Strait which divides Istanbul in two. Some revelers had jumped into the water to escape the gunfire and were being rescued by police, NTV said.

Reuters