© APYusuf Yerkel kicks a protester already held by special forces.
His face contorted in anger, a man in a suit and tie takes aim for a running kick at a protester pinned to the ground by two soldiers.
Yusef Yerkel, an aide to the Turkish prime minister, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, was photographed making the violent assault during a visit to the town of Soma, the scene of the country's worst ever mining disaster. He kicked the man three or four times, according to Turkish media.
The image of Yerkel - a former PhD student at the University of London's School of Oriental and African Studies - caused a furious response on social media and could fuel anti-government protests in the aftermath of the mining accident. He later promised that an explanation of the incident would be delivered in a statement on Thursday.
The incident happened on Wednesday as Erdoğan was jostled by a large angry crowd as he tried to enter a building. Amid jeers, whistling and chanting, security aides were forced to hold back protesters to allow a visibly shaken Erdoğan to pass.
© AP Yerkel reportedly kicked the protester a number of times.
The prime minister's office distanced itself from the incident, with one official saying the issue was Yerkel's "own personal matter."
Erdoğan's speech during a visit to the mine was widely seen to be grossly insensitive. He said accidents were not unusual in the history of mining, citing incidents in 19th-century Britain.
The photographs and video show the mounting level of anger in the country over the mine accident and the government's response. Protesters were reportedly kept away from Turkey's president, Abdullah Gül, who visited Soma on Thursday, although the BBC reported some heckling.
© Emrah Gurel/AP Recep Tayyip Erdoğan (left) and Yerkel (right) during the visit to Soma.
Meanwhile, hundreds of people attended the first funerals of victims of the mine disaster. The death toll stood at 282 by noon on Thursday, with more than 100 miners still trapped underground.
A three day period of mourning and respect is being held here in North Cyprus. I t has already extended longer to maybe even one week. All entertainment has also been cancelled voluntarily. Also in people's minds is the fact that notices regarding the danger of the mines were put in during April and declined/rejected by Erdogan's party. Just weeks before the disaster. Plus there have been lies on the number of refuge areas in the mines when there was only one! And the oxygen masks had only enough oxygen for 5 minutes and were never checked in years. In fact a sad case is of father and son in mine together, the father found the son and they dies together - this is not meant to be that families are in the mine together.
Plus another fact is that 14 miners found the 'refuge' where there were oxygen masks but they were all found together in a heap on the ground as they had shared the oxygen masks available for the very SHORT time that the supply lasted. Then they ALL DIED WHEN IT RAN OUT.
4000 accidents in China BUT one guy could survive ( horrendously for the poor man) for 17 YEARS!
Definitely our fellow humankind are being treated as sub humans in all of this and Erdogan has the gaul to compare their mines to UK in the 19 hundreds!
I pray he has lost any credibility he ever had with the gullible South East that he increased income for - as well as bribing with money in the elections. Hopefully his days are now well and truly over but who to take over. I personally wish Abdullah Gul - who has empathy - takes over but the irony is Erdogan wants his job!
Cant wait to see if our hero Putin has a comment about all this and I hope the Russian health and Safety record has improved - and everywhere else for that matter.