Thousands of demonstrators have gathered in central Istanbul for a third day of protests against Turkey’s Islamist-rooted government.
After a few hours of calm earlier in the day, Taksim Square, the focal point of the protests, began to fill up again with protesters waving flags, chanting anti-government slogans and calling on the prime minister, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, to step down.
“They call me a dictator,” he said in a speech on Sunday, a day after he called for an immediate end to the protests.
“If they liken a humble servant to a dictator, then I am at a loss for words.”
Dozens have been injured and more than 1,700 people arrested in 235 demonstrations that have flared up in 67 cities across the vast nation.
In the capital, Ankara, on Sunday, police reportedly fired tear gas in an attempt to disperse a crowd demonstrating against the government.
Some protesters camped overnight at Istanbul’s Taksim Square, gathering around the monument to Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, the founder of modern secular Turkey.
Akin, who has been in Taksim for the past four days, said: “We are not leaving. The only answer now is for this government to fall. We are tired of this oppressive government constantly putting pressure on us.
“This is no longer about these trees,” he said, referring to Taksim’s Gezi Park, which was the initial focus of the protests.
Amnesty International said there had been two deaths, and Turkey’s Western allies including Britain and the US called on the government to show restraint.
Police withdrew from Taksim Square on Saturday after violent clashes in which they fired tear gas and turned water cannon against the demonstrators.