Protests have continued for the second day in Istanbul and Ankara, Turkey. Demonstrators have chanted anti-government slogans which arose from opposition to the NATO regime's effort to closed down a public park., a photo by Pan-African News Wire File Photos on Flickr.
1 June 2013
Last updated at 08:51
BBC
Turkey protests: Unrest rages in Istanbul and Ankara
Turkey is entering a second day of protests after clashes between police and demonstrators left dozens of people injured in Istanbul on Friday.
The protest began as a sit-in over plans to redevelop Gezi Park in Taksim Square, but escalated and became violent after police used tear gas.
Tear gas was again fired on Saturday morning as hundreds of protesters marched over a Bosphorus bridge.
In the capital, Ankara, protesters tried to march on the parliament.
Transport lockdown
Hundreds of protesters marched over the bridge connecting the Asian and European shores of Istanbul on Saturday morning to try to reach the main square.
Police fired tear gas to try to disperse them and some protesters threw rocks.
One Istanbul resident, who gave her name as Lily, told the BBC's World Service: "There are 40,000 people crossing the bridge between Asia and Europe today. All the public transport is on lockdown."
She said that police had dropped tear-gas canisters from helicopters overnight.
"About half past one the entire city started to reverberate. People were banging on pots, pans, blowing whistles," she said.
The BBC's Louise Greenwood in Istanbul says police from as far afield as Antalya are being drafted in to help quell the violence.
She says the central Taksim district and surrounding areas remain cordoned off and bridges are closed to traffic.
Istanbul's governor said a dozen people were admitted to hospital and more than 60 people detained after Friday's clashes.
In Ankara, protesters staged what they described as a solidarity rally, with many participants chanting: "Everywhere is resistance, everywhere is Taksim!"
On Saturday, protesters chanting anti-government slogans tried to march on the parliament.
The US has expressed concern over Turkey's handling of the protests and Amnesty International condemned the police's tactics.
Witnesses said tear gas was deployed randomly on people who were "by and large protesting peacefully".
'Creeping Islamisation'
Demonstrators had gathered in Gezi Park on Friday to contest the controversial redevelopment project aimed at easing congestion around Taksim Square, which involved uprooting trees.
Opponents of Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's plans say the park is one of the few green areas left in central Istanbul.
Correspondents say the issue has helped highlight unhappiness among young people towards the government and ruling Justice and Development (AK) Party over what they see as creeping Islamisation.
Last week, Turkey's parliament approved legislation restricting the sale and consumption of alcoholic drinks between 22:00 and 06:00.
The prime minister's AK Party has its roots in political Islam, but he says he is committed to Turkey's state secularism.
Mr Erdogan has been in power since 2002 and some in Turkey have complained that his government is becoming increasingly authoritarian.
Earlier this month, riot police clashed with tens of thousands of people attempting to hold a May Day march in Istanbul.
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Turkey police attack Istanbul sit-in against uprooting trees
Fri May 31, 2013 4:51PM GMT
presstv.ir
Riot police in Turkey have used teargas and water cannons to disperse a peaceful sit-in protest by hundreds of people in Istanbul.
At least two dozen people were wounded after police attacked the four-day protest in Istanbul’s iconic Taksim Square on Friday.
Witnesses said several protesters, including two opposition legislators, were hospitalized after being affected by the gas while two others were hospitalized after they were hit in the head by teargas canisters.
A number of protesters were also injured after a wall they climbed collapsed during a police chase. Two protestors suffered broken arms and several others had minor bone fractures.
Protesters have occupied the square's park, Gezi, since May 28 to prevent bulldozers from uprooting the trees and demolishing the park in order to replace it with a shopping mall.
Police have attacked the protesters several times in the past four days but they have refused to leave the park.
On Thursday, riot police set fire to several tents and used teargas and pepper spray in a bid to force activists out of the park.
The protesters say Gezi Park, which is a traditional gathering point for rallies and protests as well as a popular tourist destination, is the city's last green public space.
Unconfirmed reports suggest more than 10,000 people have gathered in Taksim's Gezi Park.
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