Turkish media outlets released a video showing the moment a brawl erupted under the dome of the Turkish Parliament between Justice and Development Party (AKP) member Alpay Özalan and Republican People's Party (CHP) member Ahmet Şık. The footage shows Özalan attacking Şık, while the latter attempted to punch him, resulting in Şık falling to the ground.
Members of Parliament gathered to try to break up the fight and separate the two, while some also got involved in the altercation. Another video captured drops of blood on the ground from the scuffle, indicating that one of them was injured during the incident.
The Grand National Assembly of Turkey (TBMM) convened upon the invitation of Parliamentary Speaker Numan Kurtulmuş to discuss the reasons behind the detention of deputy Can Atalay, who was imprisoned and stripped of his parliamentary membership in connection with the Gezi Park case. The legal quorum for the meeting of the 600-member parliament was reached with 200 members present.
Bülent Turan, Vice President of the Grand National Assembly of Turkey from the AKP, who chaired the special session, gave the floor to Ahmet Şık. Şık, looking at the AKP members, said, "You have no shame. You have no slightest bit of shame. You have no dignity," after which members of the AKP approached the podium. AKP group leader Abdullah Güler called out to Şık, telling him to "shut up," and Şık responded to the backlash by saying, "That's you, you scoundrel."
He continued speaking from the podium, addressing the AKP members, and said, "If you all did good for this country like Atalay did, you would be people who will pray in gratitude for a lifetime. The terrorist organization in this country are the people sitting in these rows," which provoked the brawl.
