Police in Turkey have clashed with thousands of people protesting the killing of a young man by security forces during an earlier protest in the country.

On Tuesday, Turkish police fired tear gas and plastic bullets at the demonstrators gathering in Istanbul to protest the killing of Ahmet Atakan, a 22-year-old protester who was killed by security forces earlier, in the southern Turkish city of Antakya in Hatay Province.

The protesters rallied on the outskirts of Taksim Square and shouted anti-government slogans, including “Taksim will be the graveyard of fascism,” AFP reported.

Clashes were also reported during Atakan’s funeral in Hatay.

In addition, the protesters staged another demonstration in the Turkish capital, Ankara.

According to a report by the Dogan news agency on Tuesday, Atakan was killed after being hit in the head by a tear gas canister fired by Turkish security forces during a protest to denounce violence carried out by government forces, which had already left a 14-year-old boy, Berkin Elvan, in a coma since June.

Elvan had also been hit with a gas canister.

A peaceful sit-in back in June aimed at saving Istanbul’s central Gezi Park from being razed prompted a violent police response.

Several people were killed and thousands injured after the protests spiraled into nationwide demos against the government.

 

Source: pressTv