Reina nightclub attack: 18-year-old Israeli girl's first trip abroad was her last

Tuesday, 3 January 2017

Israeli teenager, Leanne Nassar begged her parents to let her go to Istanbul for New Year's Eve , but her trip ended in tragedy when a terrorist stormed the Reina night club and killed 39, leaving dozens injured.

Nasser, 18, from Tira, an Arab town in central Israel, had big plans for the future after finishing high school in June. She worked at a dental clinic and was saving to buy a car. She wanted to be a dentist one day. But first was New Year's Eve and celebrating the start of 2017. She flew to Turkey from Israel on Dec. 30 with two friends, Roa Mansour and Alaa Abdul Hai, to celebrate New Year's Eve.

According to CNN, the four young women made their way to the Reina restaurant on the Bosporus in Istanbul. A few hours before midnight, she posted a picture to Snapchat. In it, she flashed a half-smile, a floral crown atop her long, dark hair. Her brown eyes looked straight at the camera.

Her father had refused because he was worried Istanbul wasn't safe and he wanted her to stay home. Despondent, she turned to her aunt, Layal Masarweh, who intervened on her behalf.

"Her father was totally against that," Masarweh said. "He was saying that Istanbul is too dangerous and that she should not go at all. But she insisted, saying that nothing will happen to her."

Masarweh now says she cannot forgive herself for what happened to her niece, who had aspirations of becoming a dentist.

"I wish I was with her to defend her or do anything to save her life. I wish they took my soul and gave it to her," she said.

Layan’s funeral will hold today,  Tuesday, January. Meanwhile, her three friends were found -- two were uninjured. One was in the hospital, having sustained moderate injuries in the attack, but she was in stable condition and was expected to recover.

More photos below...