Turkish photojournalist shoved to the ground by police at NYC protest

Fatih Aktaş, a photojournalist for the Turkish state-run outlet Anadolu Agency, was shoved to the ground by multiple New York City police officers while covering a pro-Palestinian protest in Brooklyn on May 31, 2024.

Protesters gathered outside Barclays Center arena at 3 p.m., NBC News reported, before walking the mile to the Brooklyn Museum, where they occupied the plaza and entered the building, hanging banners both inside and on the facade and calling for a cease-fire in the ongoing Israel-Hamas war.

Aktaş told Anadolu he was photographing the violent police response to the protests when he became a target of it. “While I was trying to capture the police intervention in the protests, a police officer strongly pushed me backward,” Aktaş said. “To avoid damaging my camera, I had to fall on my back, hitting my elbow hard on the ground.”

In footage of the incident, Aktaş appears to be standing and photographing police while demonstrators march in front of the museum. At least three officers can then be seen shoving Aktaş, with the photojournalist landing on the ground approximately 10 feet back from the officers. Moments later, another officer can be seen helping him to his feet as two supervisory officers walk past, with one of the higher-ranking officers then pushing him again and ordering him to back up.

Aktaş said that he didn’t initially notice the scrapes and bruises on his elbow, but was grateful that his injuries weren’t worse. “I could have hit my head on the ground at that moment, which could have had more severe consequences,” he told Anadolu.

In a video published by a Turkish media association, Aktaş described the incident and showed the injury to his elbow. Neither Aktaş nor Anadolu responded to requests for further comment.

Turkish public officials condemned the attack and stated their support for Aktaş and Anadolu.