Police detain 148 people after Syrian shops attacked

ANKARA

Turkish police detained 148 people in connection with attacks on homes and businesses believed to be owned by Syrian migrants in Ankara’s Altındağ neighborhood.

The incidents broke out late on Aug. 11 in response to a fight between locals and migrants in which an 18-year-old Turkish man was stabbed to death.

Stones were thrown at Syrians’ homes while some shops were also ransacked.

Ankara authorities said calm had been restored after several hours and urged citizens not to pay attention to “provocative statements and messages” online.

The Ankara police said they had detained 148 people who were either suspected of involvement in the violence or of disseminating incendiary social media posts.

At least 38 of the suspects had prior criminal records for robbery, assault, or drug trafficking, the police added.

The authorities also stated two “foreign nationals” also have been detained and charged with homicide over the deadly fight.

Turkish Red Crescent chair Kerem Kınık said on Twitter that a Syrian child had been hospitalized after being injured by a stone thrown at his family’s home.

As the events calmed down on Aug. 12, the owners of the businesses came to their shops to inspect the damage.

While very few of the tradesmen in the neighborhood opened their shops, it was seen that some of them put white sheets in front of their workplaces with “Turkish shop” written on them.