Last night, large parts of Istanbul were covered in clouds of tear gas in what appears to be the most violent crackdown of the authorities on the peaceful protests opposing Erdogan's increasingly authoritarian rule so far. At 9pm with only a 15 minutes warning the police attacked Gezi park which was at that time filled with peaceful protestors, among them kids, elderly and tourists as well. In less than half an hour the park was cleared from protestors after which the police started tearing down the tents, banners, infirmaries and community spaces that were set up by the protestors. A lot of people sought refuge in the hotels surrounding Gezi Park, with the Divan Hotel opening its doors to the wounded and being turned into an emergency hospital. The violence of the police last night was unprecedented, with water cannons shooting water at a hospital entrance, police firing tear gas inside buildings and apartments and attacking the Divan Hotel arresting doctors and the injured alike. Widespread rumours suggest that the water from the water cannons has been treated with some kind of chemical, causing skin and eyes to burn.
In a reaction to the violent crackdown, hundreds of thousands of Istanbullus took to the streets, marching on highways and across the bridge over the Bosporus in order to join their fellow-Capulers in the area around Taksim Square. All night long protestors tried to advance towards the centre, only to be met with more police violence. Reports of the army and military police being brought in feed fears of escalation of the conflict, especially in the light of the provocative AKP-rally that is organised by Erdogan in Istanbul today.
In Ankara the violence continued as well, with reports of dozens of protestors being hospitalized after being hit in the head or the chest by tear gas canisters, which are used as bullets and fired directly at the protestors by the police.
The Taksim Solidarity Platform called for rallies at 16:00 (IST) today, with marches being organized in the following towns across the country: Edirne, Bursa, Antep, Konya, Trabzon, Tarsus, Adana, Çaycuma, Çanakkale, Antalya, Samsun, Eskisehir, Antakya, Izmir, Mersin.#occupygezi #WeAreGezi #OccupyTurkey
Last night, large parts of Istanbul were covered in clouds of tear gas in what appears to be the most violent crackdown of the authorities on the peaceful protests opposing Erdogan's increasingly authoritarian rule so far. At 9pm with only a 15 minutes warning the police attacked Gezi park which was at that time filled with peaceful protestors, among them kids, elderly and tourists as well. In less than half an hour the park was cleared from protestors after which the police started tearing down the tents, banners, infirmaries and community spaces that were set up by the protestors. A lot of people sought refuge in the hotels surrounding Gezi Park, with the Divan Hotel opening its doors to the wounded and being turned into an emergency hospital. The violence of the police last night was unprecedented, with water cannons shooting water at a hospital entrance, police firing tear gas inside buildings and apartments and attacking the Divan Hotel arresting doctors and the injured alike. Widespread rumours suggest that the water from the water cannons has been treated with some kind of chemical, causing skin and eyes to burn.
In a reaction to the violent crackdown, hundreds of thousands of Istanbullus took to the streets, marching on highways and across the bridge over the Bosporus in order to join their fellow-Capulers in the area around Taksim Square. All night long protestors tried to advance towards the centre, only to be met with more police violence. Reports of the army and military police being brought in feed fears of escalation of the conflict, especially in the light of the provocative AKP-rally that is organised by Erdogan in Istanbul today.
In Ankara the violence continued as well, with reports of dozens of protestors being hospitalized after being hit in the head or the chest by tear gas canisters, which are used as bullets and fired directly at the protestors by the police.
The Taksim Solidarity Platform called for rallies at 16:00 (IST) today, with marches being organized in the following towns across the country: Edirne, Bursa, Antep, Konya, Trabzon, Tarsus, Adana, Çaycuma, Çanakkale, Antalya, Samsun, Eskisehir, Antakya, Izmir, Mersin.#occupygezi #WeAreGezi #OccupyTurkey
In a reaction to the violent crackdown, hundreds of thousands of Istanbullus took to the streets, marching on highways and across the bridge over the Bosporus in order to join their fellow-Capulers in the area around Taksim Square. All night long protestors tried to advance towards the centre, only to be met with more police violence. Reports of the army and military police being brought in feed fears of escalation of the conflict, especially in the light of the provocative AKP-rally that is organised by Erdogan in Istanbul today.
In Ankara the violence continued as well, with reports of dozens of protestors being hospitalized after being hit in the head or the chest by tear gas canisters, which are used as bullets and fired directly at the protestors by the police.
The Taksim Solidarity Platform called for rallies at 16:00 (IST) today, with marches being organized in the following towns across the country: Edirne, Bursa, Antep, Konya, Trabzon, Tarsus, Adana, Çaycuma, Çanakkale, Antalya, Samsun, Eskisehir, Antakya, Izmir, Mersin.#occupygezi #WeAreGezi #OccupyTurkey
