Thousands protested in the Turkish city of Izmir on September 2 to oppose the docking of the USS Wasp, a US warship deployed in the Middle East to support Israel.

“We don’t want in Izmir an American ship that will bring war and death to Palestine!” the protesters declared. They demanded the immediate departure of the ship from their port. The ship carried 1,500 American soldiers. It just finished participating in a war game with Turkish naval forces in August. In addition to the USS Wasp, the USS Oak Hill and USS New York are also in the region, both of which were also deployed in support of Israel.

“It has been almost a year. Israel is carrying out a brutal massacre in Gaza,” the protesters declared. “By killing tens of thousands of people, Israel is not only committing a great crime against humanity. It is also … an incitement to drag our region into a bloody war.”

The anti-imperialist Turkish Youth Union was among those that led the protests. It condemned the Turkish government for allowing the ship to dock. They called for the withdrawal of American soldiers from the streets of Izmir after youths held two US Marines who were roaming the city and shouted “Yankee go home!”

“The U.S. soldiers who carry the blood of our soldiers and thousands of Palestinians on their hands must not pollute our country,” the youth group said.