The bodyguards of Turkey President Recep Tayyip Erdogan got into a fight with protesters in the nation’s capital, and the whole thing was caught on video.
Erdogan had been in Washington to visit with Presidnet Donald Trump and protesters gathered outside of the Turkish ambassador’s residence in Washington, D.C. on Tuesday, said The Guardian. He was inside the residence when the altercation started.
Witnesses said a brawl broke out after Erdogan’s bodyguards attacked demonstrators who were carrying Kurdish PYD party flags.
Nine people were hurt during the fight and two were arrested as a result – one for aggravated assault and the other for assault on a police officer, Fox News reported.
“We witnessed what appeared to be a brutal attack on peaceful protesters,” a police official said Wednesday.
“All of the sudden they just ran towards us,” said Lucy Usoyan, a Yazidi Kurd demonstrator. “Someone was beating me in the head nonstop, and I thought, ‘Okay, I’m on the ground already, what is the purpose to beat me?”
The Metropolitan Police Department issued a statement following the incident.
“The actions seen outside the Turkish Embassy yesterday in Washington, D.C. stand in contrast to the First Amendment rights and principles we work tirelessly to protect each and every day,” the statement said.
“The Metropolitan Police Department made two arrests following yesterday’s incidents and we have every intention to pursue charges against the other individuals involved,” the statement continued. “We will continue to work with our partners at the United States State Department and United States Secret Service to identify and hold all subjects accountable for their involvement in the altercation.”
Turkey views the YPG-PYD as a terrorist group, which may explain why Erdogan’s security might have wanted to intervene in the protest when they saw a flag from the PYD party.
“It is absolutely unacceptable to take the YPG-PYD into consideration as partners in the region, and it’s going against a global agreement we reached,” Erdogan said. “In the same way, we should never allow those groups who want to change the ethnic or religious structures in the region to use terrorism as a pretext.”