28 detained after altercation between Islamist youth group members and students at Istanbul University

ISTANBUL

The clashes come amid rising tension between student groups following the advances of ISIL across the border in Syria and Iraq. DHA Photo

Police have detained 28 students after suspected members of the Muslim Youth, a fundamentalist organization that has previously expressed support for jihadists in Syria, entered Istanbul University’s Beyazıt Campus on the morning of Oct. 9 before allegedly attacking students.

The alleged attack occurred at around 9 a.m. at the university’s faculty of arts and sciences, according to Doğan News Agency.

Five students were injured both in the altercation and in the ensuing police response, with two reported to be in serious condition, reports said.

Students at the university accused security guards of doing nothing to stop the assailants, who wore hats and masks to hide their identity.

Others also accused police of mistreating detainees in the boiler room of a nearby police station. Pelin Zorbay, a journalist with online news portal Sendika.Org, was allegedly beaten by police before being taken into custody as she was trying to report on the incident.

On Sept. 26, members of the same group attacked Istanbul University students who had erected a stand to denounce atrocities committed by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) as it closed in on Kobane in northern Syria.