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A Turkish-American man, who served an 11-month prison sentence in the United States for attacking demonstrators protesting Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan during his visit to Washington last year, arrived in İstanbul on Saturday, Ahval reports, citing Cumhuriyet daily.

Sinan Narin was arrested in June last year after pleading guilty to assaulting protesters in a fight outside the Turkish Ambassador’s residence in Washington during a visit by the Turkish president in May of 2017, in an incident that made national headlines and sparked outrage among members of the U.S. Congress.

Narin, who was released in May, was met by a large group of friends carrying the Turkish flag, the daily reported.

In a statement to the press, Narin spoke of the ‘’horrible’’ conditions of the U.S. prison where he served his sentence and thanked Turkish President Erdogan for personally messaging him while behind bars, Cumhuriyet said.

‘’May God be pleased with our president,’’ he said. ‘’It is through his efforts that my sentence was reduced from 10 to four years.’’

Narin will serve the remainder of his sentence under probation.