Turkish riot police fired tear gas and water cannons into crowds of demonstrators gathered in Istanbul’s Gezi park on Friday. Since May 28, activists have held peaceful protests to prevent the demolition of a what they call Istanbul’s last green public space.
According to Al Jazeera’s Rawya Rageh, protesters complained that police were firing teargas indiscriminately, while some demonstrators were seen throwing rocks at police.
While the main demand of the demonstration is to protect Gezi park, other are airing grievances against Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
On Twitter, hashtags related to the protest trended worldwide, with the main term “#OccupyGezi” reaching more than 160,000 mentions on Friday. Many activists on the ground have started tweeting in English in order to spread news of the police crackdown.