New York City, US, Sep 2 (EFE).- A group of 15 members of the Turkish Youth Union (TGB) – a nationalist, anti-American and anti-imperialist youth group – assaulted two US Marines, local authorities reported on Monday.
The attackers, including two women and 13 men, were taken into custody, the governorship of Izmir in western Turkey said on its X account.
The governorship said that five US soldiers saw the incident from a distance and got involved.
The assault, which occurred at around 4 pm, was later confirmed by the US embassy in Turkey.
«We can confirm reports that US service members embarked aboard the USS Wasp were the victims of an assault in İzmir today, and are now safe,» the embassy said.
«We thank Turkish authorities for their rapid response and ongoing investigation,» it added.
The US Sixth Fleet later posted that the two marines were aided by other marines in the area and were taken to a local hospital for evaluation, but were not injured and have returned to the USS Wasp, an amphibious assault ship of the US Navy.
The ship arrived in Izmir on Sunday after carrying out joint training with Turkish assault ships in the Mediterranean, sources from the US Department of Defense told media. EFE
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