September 3 (UPI) — Two US soldiers dressed in civilian clothes were attacked by members of an anti-American youth group in a Turkish port city, according to officials from both nations.

The incident occurred around 4 p.m. local time Monday in Izmir. The province of Izmir said in a statement that the US soldiers were “physically attacked” by 13 men and two women from the Turkey Youth Union, a nationalist youth organization with anti-American and anti-European Union views. The 15 suspects were captured by local officials while five more US soldiers who had watched the brawl from a distance sought to help, according to Izmir, who added that an investigation into the event had been initiated.

The US Embassy in Turkey acknowledged the assault in a statement, identifying the soldiers as those who landed in the nation aboard the USS Wasp. The assaulted soldiers were now “safe,” the embassy added, thanking Turkish authorities for their prompt response and ongoing inquiry. An X account associated to the website of the Turkish Youth Union broadcast an edited video of the assault, showing the US soldiers scream for help as they were detained by numerous individuals.

At one point in the video, guys are seen attempting to pull sacks over the heads of the Americans while members of the audience cry “Yankee, go home!” The assault appears to be a reference to an episode in 2003 during the Iraq War in which US soldiers seized Turkish soldiers whose heads were covered with bags, causing a diplomatic crisis between the two countries. “No one will be able to respond to the cries for help from U.S. soldiers,” the caption accompanying the video posted on the Turkish Youth Union X account reads. “Your hands are stained with the blood of our brave soldiers and thousands of Palestinians.”

The USS Wasp assault ship was sent to the eastern Mediterranean Sea in late June to serve as a military deterrence to the increasing confrontation between Israel and Iran’s proxy group Hamas. According to the United States Defense Ministry, the USS Wasp landed in Izmir for a regularly planned port call on Sunday.