Trending: police and demonstrators clash in Istanbul

Police reportedly fire tear gas and use water cannon against thousands of protesters marking International Labour Day in Turkey's largest city.

Narrated

1 min read

Dalal Rogers & Noor El-Terk

01 May, 2015

Thousands of people were protesting in Istanbul [Anadolu]

Police and demonstrators have clashed in Turkey as thousands of people marked International Labour Day with protests.

Riot police and water cannon were deployed near Taksim Square in the morning to prepare for the protests. The square has been the focal point for many protest movements in recent years.

Clashes erupted in the Besiktas area of Istanbul when protesters tried to march to Taksim. Reports said police used water cannon and arrested protesters.

Twitter users shared images of demonstrators being confronted by riot police. Andrew Gardner, of Amnesty International, estimated there were about 2,000 protesters on the streets.

Some Twitter users claimed that police used excessive force and live ammunition.

Lucy Kafanov, a journalist, also reported that tear gas and water cannon were used down side streets of Istanbul to disperse protests.

According to the AP news agency, today's marches were the largest since the government passed a security bill giving police officers increased powers against protesters.