Two U.S. Marines from the USS Wasp were attacked Monday during a port visit to Izmir, Turkey, according to a Navy spokesman.
The Marines, who are part of the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit, were “on liberty” at the time of the incident and were taken to a local hospital for evaluation as a precaution, said U.S. Navy Commander Timothy Gorman, a spokesman for the U.S. 6th Fleet. The Marines have since returned to their ship.
“The local police in Izmir and the Naval Criminal Investigation Service are cooperating in the investigation of the incident,” Gorman said. “No Marines have been arrested by authorities and those involved are cooperating with investigators.”
The Navy is not currently releasing further details about the nature of the incident, such as what the Marines were doing at the time or which suspects attacked them.
The USS Wasp is part of a Navy Expeditionary Unit on a routine deployment to the eastern Mediterranean Sea. The 24th Navy Expeditionary Unit recently completed a bilateral training exercise with Turkey in the region.
