ISTANBUL — Anti-American protesters shouting “Yankee, go home!” roughed up three U.S. Navy sailors Wednesday in Istanbul near where their warship was docked on an inlet of the Bosphorus Strait in the Black Sea.
A video posted on YouTube shows up to 20 men shouting at the sailors, calling them killers and placing plastic bags over their heads. The protesters claimed to be from a group called the “Turkish Youth Union,” according to a statement from U.S. Naval Forces Europe-Africa.
The servicemen, who were not in uniform, were from the USS Ross, a guided-missile destroyer docked nearby, according to Navy Capt. Greg Hicks, a spokesman for the U.S. European Command. He said they were not hurt and were safely back aboard the ship, but that shore leave for its sailors was canceled for the remainder of the day. The incident is being investigated by U.S. authorities, he said.
“Soldiers from the occupying country think they can walk around freely in Eminonu,” association spokesman Melik Dibek said, referring to the neighborhood where the incident occurred. “It’s obvious why they’ve anchored here — because of their ambitions in the Mediterranean and the Black Sea. American imperialism is the reason why the Middle East has turned into a chamber of fire.”
The U.S. Embassy in Ankara condemned the attack on Twitter and said it had no doubt that most Turks would reject such an action that “so disrespects Turkey’s reputation for hospitality.”
Anti-American sentiment in Turkey is not widespread, but some Turks accuse the United States of meddling in regional affairs.
The video of the incident shows how one sailor tried to ignore the protesters to no avail. Another worked unsuccessfully to push off the protesters. When the protesters briefly placed plastic bags over the sailors’ heads, they began to walk and then run away down a sidewalk as the protesters gave chase, yelling, “Yankee, go home!”
Dogan news agency said Turkish police have detained 12 people, including one woman, in connection with the incident.
AP Military Writer Bob Burns in Washington contributed to this report.
