Charges dropped against 11 of 15 Turkish security officers in D.C. brawl

U.S. officials have dropped charges against 11 of 15 Turkish security officers involved in fighting outside the Turkish ambassador’s residence in D.C. last year.

Motions to dismiss the charges were filed in November for four individuals and for seven more in February, but was only revealed late Wednesday night, the Wall Street Journal reported.

In May, fighting broke out between protesters and Turkish security officers outside the ambassador’s residence in D.C. Nine people were hospitalized, and one police officer and two members of the Secret Service were also hurt, the Journal reported.

D.C. police said the Turkish officers violently attacked peaceful protesters demonstrating against the visit of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erodgan. Turkish officials have said that the demonstrators support the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), considered a terrorist organization in Turkey, and threatened the security of the president.

Video of the fighting circulated widely in news media. Members of Congress condemned Turkey for their actions on U.S. soil and called for the expulsion of the ambassador and a halt to future arms deals between the two countries, yet none of this came to pass.

Though the issue had been raised in meetings between U.S. and Turkish officials, the charges were dropped for insufficient evidence and misidentifying some of the suspects, not because of political pressure to ease tensions between Washington and Ankara, the Journal reported.

Charges are still pending against four members of the Turkish President’s security team, a spokesman for the U.S. District Attorney’s office said in an email. They include Ismail Dalkiran, Servet Erkan, Ahmet Karabay and Mehmet Sarman.

On Thursday, victims of the attacked expressed disappointment and outrage at the news that the security officers were cleared of wrongdoing.

“The security personnel committed a crime, there was enough evidence to charge them — lots of video — disappointing that the U.S. has dropped charges,” said Ceren Borazan, who was grabbed around the neck and thrown to the ground by the security officer Dalkiran.

“I was beaten and injured here on American soil while exercising my first amendment rights,” she said.

“I think this is an invitation for Erdogan to continue its oppressive policies both in Turkey and abroad,” Ruken Isdak, who was present when fighting broke out but wasn’t injured, told the Washington Times. “President Trump should not award dictators like Erdogan for political gains.”

The U.S. District Attorney said in an email that it doesn’t comment on charging decisions, but the Journal earlier reported that the fate of the Turkish officers frequently came up in talks between officials from Washington and Ankara.

There is concern the two NATO allies are heading for confrontation in Syria, as Turkey entered the Syrian city of Afrin on Monday, clearing out Syrian-Kurdish YPG forces, which are backed by the U.S. in the fight against ISIS.

Ankara considers the YPG terrorists and aligned with the PKK and a threat to their border with Syria and national security.

Aram Suren Hamparian, the executive director of the Amernian National Committee of America, witnessed the fighting take place but wasn’t injured at the event.

“This news was sad, but not surprising,” he said.

“This whole episode confirms what we’ve always know: Ankara gets a free pass in D.C. for genocide, invasion, abuse, and even brazenly open attacks on American citizens on U.S. soil. It’s shameful.”

Arrest warrants are also still active for two Canadian citizens who involved in the fighting and two U.S. citizens, Sinan Narin and Eyup Yildirim, are awaiting sentencing in D.C. Superior Court. The two men were arrested in June and plead guilty to felony assault in December.

Among those cleared of charges was Mr. Erdogan’s head of security, Muhsin Kose.

The other cleared men include Turgut Akar, Harrettin Eren, Ismail Ergunduz, Tugay Erkan, Mustafa Murat Summercan, Feride Kayasan, Gokhan Yildirim and Hamza Yurteri.

In the indictment released in July, the actions of these men and Mr. Kose were, at least once, said to have “aggressively pushed through the [Metro Police Department] cordon, crossed the street into Sheridan Circle, and commenced a second assault on the anti-Erdoğan protesters.”