Protesters flee Taksim Square

June 12th, 2013

Peter Nolan

Murad Sezer / Reuters

Demonstrators chat next to a damaged car at Gezi Park in central Istanbul on Wednesday.

Calm returned to Istanbul’s Taksim Square early Wednesday, hours after riot police used tear gas and water cannons to clear many demonstrators after almost two weeks of clashes.

Only a handful of protesters remained in Gezi Park, the small tree-lined part of the square that has been turned into a makeshift camp for opponents of Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan.

In what became the worst Turkey clashes in a decade, police used water cannons and tear gas as protesters fired back with stones and Molotov cocktails. The demonstrators complain of brutality, saying Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan is imposing an Islamic agenda in secular Turkey. NBC’s Richard Engel reports.

Tuesday’s violent scenes – mirrored in other Turkish cities – prompted the White House to express concern and call for dialogue between Erdogan’s government and protesters.

“We continue to follow events in Turkey with concern, and our interest remains supporting freedom of expression and assembly, including the right to peaceful protest,” White House spokeswoman Caitlin Hayden said in a statement, according to Reuters.

Erdogan has repeatedly dismissed suggestions of a compromise, referring to them as looters who are “arm in arm with terrorists.” However, he was expected to meet some protest leaders Wednesday.

At least two sides of Taksim Square were reopened to traffic Wednesday, and there were no signs of the violent clashes that have rocked the area for several days.

Some shops had also reopened, according to Derek Stoffel, a reporter with Canadian broadcaster CBC.

Until late Tuesday, thousands had defiantly occupied the square, using destroyed vehicles as a makeshift barrier.

But as dusk fell, police made a quick and decisive push to clear most of them out of the area, taking advantage of rain and strong winds.

Clouds of choking tear gas sent protesters scattering into side streets, according to Reuters, which also reported that staff in surrounding hotels raised shutters just enough to allow people to crawl inside for shelter.

Clashes between police and demonstrators went back and forth as winds blew tear gas away, but the onslaught scattered protesters enough to allow municipal workers to move in and remove debris and obstacles from much of the square.

Government officials acknowledged that protesters had been injured, with Istanbul Gov. Hüseyin Avni Mutlu describing the injuries as minor. Turkey’s Hurriyet Daily News, however, quoted the president of the Turkish Medical Association as saying hundreds of protesters had been injured and five of the cases were critical.

Human Rights Watch said one nearby medical facility had treated more than 100 patients, mostly for injuries related to the effects of tear gas.

Angelos Tzortzinis / AFP – Getty Images

Protests that started as an outcry against a local development project in Taksim Square have snowballed into widespread anger against what critics say is the government’s increasingly conservative and authoritarian agenda.

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Police also fired water cannon to disperse protesters in the center of the capital, Ankara, Reuters reported.

The protests began May 31 after police cracked down on what had been a peaceful demonstration against plans to modernize Taksim Square.

The plans include an Ottoman-style military barracks, and a cultural center, including an opera house. If the plans are implemented, the park’s modest forest of trees would be reduced to garden-size.

The crackdown led to days of rioting and turned a local issue into a nation-wide protest, killing three and injuring at least 4,000 in some 78 cities.

NBC’s Richard Engel and Jim Maceda and Reuters contributed to this report.

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This story was originally published on Wed Jun 12, 2013 5:24 AM EDT

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