Islamic extremists attack Radiohead fans for drinking alcohol during Ramadan sparking violent street protests
Band slam 'act of violent intolerance'
RADIOHEAD fans were attacked by Islamic extremists because they attended the band’s album launch during Ramadan.
The attacks sparked a huge street protest the following day which saw police fire tear gas and rubber bullets to disperse the crowds.
A group of 20 men beat up customers and employees at a violent clash at a music shop in Istanbul on Friday night.
Hard-line Muslims attacked music fans at the Velvet IndieGround because they were drinking alcohol at Radiohead launch party during the holy month.
A shocking video captured the clash.
At least two people were injured in Friday's attack at the record store, witnesses told Turkey's Dogan news agency.
The attackers trashed the shop in Istanbul's hip Tophane district, hurled insults and broke up the release party for Radiohead's new album "A Moon Shaped Pool".
The British rock group condemned the attack and said: "We hope that some day we will be able to look back on such acts of violent intolerance as things of the ancient past.
"For now, we can only offer our fans in Istanbul our love and support."
The film shows attackers hurling bar stools and wrecking the store.
One person is seen bleeding with head injuries after being hit with a bottle.
One of the attackers shouted: "We will kill you, you bastards."
Rayka Simoni, who was outside the store, told Dogan that the Radiohead fans were "quietly listening to music while sipping beer" when they were attacked.
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She said: "Twenty people started throwing bottles at them.
“One of them kicked my friend for telling them it wasn't right to hit women.”
Similar attacks have targeted art galleries in the area in the past, with critics claiming Turkey's current Islamic-rooted government is undermining the country's secular tradition.
The Hurriyet newspaper said the music store's owner was a South Korean national who had been living in Turkey for many years.
It said many South Koreans were inside at the time of the attack.
Police have opened an investigation into the violence.
The following night a mass protest against the attacks turned ugly as police fired tear gas, water cannons and rubber bullets to disperse the crowd.
More than 500 people took to the streets in Istanbul's central Cihangir neighbourhood Saturday night in response to a call from activists to protest against the attack.
Protesters shouted "Shoulder to shoulder against fascism" and denounced President Recep Tayyip Erdogan as a "thief" and a "killer".
The protest lasted less than an hour as police intervened sending campaigners fleeing to side-streets, choking on tear gas.
No one appeared to have been injured in the police operation.
Turkish authorities have regularly cracked down on anti-government demonstrations since mass protests in 2013.
They have been criticised for using too much force against even small groups.
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