In disturbing video out of Turkey Monday, members of the socialist and nationalist group Turkish Youth Union attacked American soldiers on the streets of Izmir in protest “against Israeli actions in Gaza and decades-long ‘U.S. imperialism.’” The soldiers were reportedly serving on the warship the USS Wasp, which is in the Mediterranean supporting U.S. operations in Gaza.
The video shows men aggressively shoving a sack over a soldier’s head:
Fifteen assailants were arrested after the assault.
In a statement, the Izmir governor's office said members of the Turkey Youth Union (TGB), a youth branch of the nationalist opposition Vatan Party, "physically attacked" two U.S. soldiers dressed in civilian clothes in the Konak district.
It added that five U.S. soldiers joined in after seeing the incident, and that police intervened. All 15 attackers had been detained and an investigation was launched into the matter, it said.
The U.S. Embassy to Turkey confirmed the attack and said the U.S. soldiers were now safe.
"We can confirm reports that U.S. service members embarked aboard the USS Wasp were the victims of an assault in Izmir today, and are now safe," it said on social media platform X.
The U.S. Embassy issued a statement:
We can confirm reports that U.S. service members embarked aboard the USS Wasp were the victims of an assault in İzmir today, and are now safe. We thank Turkish authorities for their rapid response and ongoing investigation.
The group posted video of their actions on X.
We've put the sack on, we'll throw it into the sea too! We will not allow the bloody plans of the murderer USA and the murderer Israel to take place in these lands. We are the soldiers of the struggle for a Fully Independent Türkiye since 1968!
Placing sacks over people’s heads is evidently a tradition:
The act of placing sacks on the heads of American soldiers has been a recurring form of protest in Türkiye since 2004, symbolizing anti-American sentiment.
This tradition traces back to the incident on July 4, 2003, when American soldiers placed sacks on the heads of Turkish soldiers in the Iraqi city of Sulaymaniyah.
The Turkish Youth Union has carried out similar protests on several occasions, targeting American soldiers.