Locals force payback on American soldier for 'bag over heads'

ISTANBUL - Hürriyet

REUTERS Photo

Eight Turks trapped an American soldier and put a bag over his head in October 2011 in the Aegean province of Bodrum, protesting the events that took place in 2003 in Suleymaniye, in which Turkish soldiers were detained with bags over their heads by American troops.

Recent footage brought up in court shows a nationalist group of men questioning an American soldier, Jesus Salaza Munoz, as he walks out of a store in Bodrum on Oct. 19, 2011. The group struggles to put a bag over his head, while the soldier attempts to run away. Munoz breaks away momentarily, but the group catches up with him and force the bag over Munoz's head.

The footage was shown in courtroom as evidence.

As they hold Munoz with the bag over his head, they chant slogans referring to the Suleymaniye incident, calling the American soldiers "torturers" and "murderers."

The responsible assailants may each face up to 16 years in prison, depending on the outcome of the court case, which is still ongoing in Bodrum.