Turkey summons US ambassador over Washington brawl

Further footage of the incident released showed Erdogan talking to his guards before their assault begins, raising questions if he ordered them to disperse demonstrators.

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region (Kurdistan24) - Turkey's Foreign Ministry summoned US Ambassador to Ankara on Monday over last week's violent street fighting in Washington DC in which President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's bodyguards took part, kicking and beating up American-Kurdish demonstrators.

Ankara delivered a written and verbal protest to Ambassador John Bass for "the aggressive and unprofessional actions taken, contrary to diplomatic rules and practices, by US security personnel" toward Turkish President's security detail.

Events that injured at least 11 people unfolded in the aftermath of Erdogan's meeting in the White House with President Donald Trump last Tuesday.

The Ministry did not specify how the US security was "aggressive," but videos of the incident showed DC police hitting some of Erdogan's bodyguards with truncheons to drive them away from protestors under the Turkish side's assault.

It also called on the US authorities to conduct "a full investigation of this diplomatic incident and provide the necessary explanation."

Pro-government Turkish media, including state-funded Anadolu agency and the Islamist Yenisafak newspaper claimed Turkish personnel "stepped in to help the DC police" as they remained inadequate to "disperse the protest with no permit."

Senator John McCain of Arizona who earlier last week called Turkey a "third-world country" expressed frustration with the Turkish summons of US ambassador.

"Can't make it up," he tweeted, sharing a news link.

McCain had earlier called on the Trump administration to declare Turkey's Ambassador to DC Serdar Kilic a persona non grata and oust him.

"I am still outraged. We should throw their ambassador the hell out of the United States of America," McCain told news network MSNBC.

"Turkish security guards' attack on peaceful protesters [this week] was a despicable display of thuggery & repression - absolutely unacceptable," McCain said two days after the incident.

Further footage of the incident released by the Voice of America showed Erdogan talking to his guards before their assault begins, raising questions if he ordered them to disperse demonstrators exercising their first amendment right.

Ankara has not refuted the charges against Erdogan himself.

US State Department previously summoned Kilic and relayed its concerns to the Turkish government “in the strongest possible terms.”

 

Editing by Ava Homa