Two people detained in Istanbul’s Taksim Square on May 1

Two people who wanted to unfurl a banner for the May 1 Worker’s Day celebrations have been detained in Istanbul’s Taksim Square by police.

کد خبر: ۶۸۹۹۰۹

تاریخ: ۱۱ ارديبهشت ۱۳۹۶ - ۱۲:۰۱

Hurriyet - Two people who wanted to unfurl a banner for the May 1 Worker’s Day celebrations have been detained in Istanbul’s Taksim Square by police.

Earlier on April 24, Interior Minister Süleyman Soylu said the May 1 celebrations would not be held in Taksim Square.

Two women entered the square despite tightened security measures and heavy presence of police early on May 1. The women unfurled a banner in the square but were initially halted by traffic police. The women were taken to the police headquarters.

Meanwhile, police tightened security nearby the square. Guests of hotels around the square were also checked before May 1. The square was closed off with barriers by police while traffic has also been suspended until the end of the celebrations.

Taksim Square became a symbolic venue for Turkey’s leftist groups after suspected ultranationalists opened fire from what is now the Marmara Hotel, killing at least 34 people in 1977.