A video of the incident shows a group of men placing a bag over the head of one of the Marines while chanting "Yankee go home."
The men are believed to be members of the Turkish Youth Union, a small nationalist and anti-American organization. The group posted the video online, claiming U.S. soldiers are responsible for "the blood of thousands of Palestinians."
According to Holly Williams, a CBS News senior foreign correspondent with experience covering Turkey, Americans are usually treated well in the country. Turkish authorities reported detaining 15 people in connection with the incident.
At the time of the attack, the Marines, part of the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit, were on shore leave. They were taken to a local hospital for uation and later returned to their ship.
U.S. Navy Cmdr. Timothy Gorman, spokesperson for the U.S. Sixth Fleet, stated that local Izmir police and the Naval Criminal Investigative Service are investigating the incident. He confirmed that no Marines were detained and that those involved are cooperating with investigators.
The USS Wasp is currently on a routine deployment to the eastern Mediterranean Sea, and the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit recently completed a bilateral training exercise with Turkey in the region.
The Act Attributes to 2003
The act of placing a bag over the heads of U.S. Marines refers to an incident on July 4, 2003, in Sulaymaniyah, Iraq. On that day, U.S. forces raided a Turkish Special Forces headquarters, detained the Turkish soldiers by placing bags over their heads, and transported them to Baghdad for questioning. The soldiers were released after about 60 hours in custody.
This incident occurred shortly after the Turkish Parliament rejected a motion allowing U.S. troops to use Turkish territory for the Iraq operation on March 1, 2003, forcing the U.S. to revise its plans.