2 US Marines Attacked During Port Visit In Turkey, Navy Says
Two US Marines aboard the USS Wasp were attacked during a port visit in Izmir, Turkey, on Monday, according to a Navy spokesman. Video of the apparent incident shows a group of men forcing a Marine to place a bag over his head while holding him down and chanting, “Yanks, go home.”
Holly Williams, a foreign correspondent for CBS News, said the men appeared to be members of a small anti-American nationalist group, the Young Turks. The group posted the video online and wrote, “American soldiers with the blood of thousands of Palestinians on their hands cannot desecrate our country.”
Williams, who has lived in Turkey and covered the incident for several years, said Americans are generally treated well in the country and that Turkish authorities have reported arresting 15 people in connection with the attack.
Turkey is a major U.S. ally in the Middle East and a member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).
Navy spokesman Timothy Gorman said the Marines, who were with the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit, were “at large” at the time of the incident and were taken to a local hospital for evaluation as a precaution. The Marines returned to their ship late Monday.
“Local police in Izmir and the Naval Criminal Investigative Service are working together to investigate this incident,” Gorman said, adding that “authorities have not detained any Marines and the personnel involved are cooperating with investigators.”
The USS Wasp is part of a Marine expeditionary unit that regularly deploys to the eastern Mediterranean. The 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit recently completed bilateral training with Turkey in the region.
