Top U.S. Senate appropriators threaten Turkey Aid over attacks on D.C. protesters

Congressional uproar over the May 16th brutal beating of peaceful American protesters in Washington, DC by Turkish President Recep Erdogan’s security forces pushed into a second week, with top U.S. Senate appropriators – Lindsey Graham (RSC) and Patrick Leahy (D-VT) – threatening to cut US assistance to Ankara if the matter is not given “the highest attention and consideration it deserves by the Government of Turkey,” reported the Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA).

In a May 18th letter to Turkey’s Ambassador, Serdar Kilic, Senators Graham and Leahy stressed: “We would like to remind you that peaceful assembly and freedom of speech are fundamental rights in this country. The aggressiveness and brutality demonstrated by the Turkish security personnel are interpreted by many of us as much more than an attack against peaceful demonstrators – it is an attack against these very rights.”

Across the U.S. Capitol, 29 U.S. Representatives, led by Congressional Hellenic Caucus Co-Chair Carolyn Maloney (D-NY), called on the State Department to take swift action and hold perpetrators accountable.

“This kind of behavior by a foreign security detail is reprehensible and cannot be tolerated. These actions are not only criminal, they are affronts to U.S. values,” House leaders told Secretary of State Tillerson in their May 19th letter.

“Freedom of speech and freedom to protest may be prohibited in Turkey and offensive to the Turkish President, but they are bedrock U.S. principles that must be safeguarded.” On May 16, members of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s security detail were caught on video brutally attacking protesters outside the Turkish Ambassador’s residence in Washington, DC and deliberately disregarding police orders to halt their assaults.

A video poster later showed Erdogan himself ordering the attack. The protest was organized by the Armenian National Committee of America, the Hellenic Council of America and several other organizations – Kurdish, Assyrian and Greek. The US State Department, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, Washington Mayor and several Congressmen condemned the incident.