Scenes of horror, Turkish police leave protesters bloodied on Gezi anniversary
June 01, – Police detained some demonstrators while CHP deputy Mahmut Tanal was speaking to the journalists on İstiklal Avenue in Taksim on May 31. Minutes after the incident, police started to attack with tear gas and water cannon on İstiklal Avenue.
Turkey was on alert on the first anniversary of the massive Gezi protests May 31. Calls were made for street action in the flashpoint area of Istanbul’s Taksim Square, which was the heart of last year’s demonstrations.
Turkish authorities kept up with heavy-handed security measures despite international attention during the May 31 demonstrations to mark the anniversary of last year’s Gezi Park protests. Here are 10 brutal scenes from today that drew condemnation on Turkish social media:
The Istanbul police canceled all holidays and increased the shifts of officers to 12 hours until a second order. Additional policemen from 11 other provinces were deployed to the city as part of measures against possible protests.
“You will not be able to come to those places like you did last year. Because the police have taken absolute orders, they will do all,” Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said during the opening ceremony of a local municipal building in Istanbul hours before the rallies, which were suppressed with characteristic brutality by his police forces.
Despite the government’s calls, demonstrators gathered in Istanbul and other cities after a calm morning. The police started to use tear gas and water cannons at 7 p.m. in Istanbul and Ankara, at the same time that protests were held in several cities. Scores of civilians and many policemen were injured.
Press journalist for HRO media – Ignacio damigo contributed to this report.
Category: European Crises
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