Istanbul Province

Hundreds of Turkish citizens defied stepped-up security measures in Istanbul adopted for the second anniversary since the Gezi Park protests.

In 2013, what started as an environmental demonstration grew into days-long rallies against the government of then PM Recep Tayyip Erdogan which culminated violently.

Iconic figures of the anti-government Gezi protests of June 2013 which spread throughout the country remain hopeful despite difficulties

Riot police and water cannons stood on alert on May 31 as Taksim Square and Gezi Park, alongside numerous roads and metro stations leading to Taksim, were closed to prevent gatherings called by Taksim Solidarity, a collective organization of several rights groups at the center of the Gezi Park protests, to commemorate the second anniversary of the nationwide anti-government protests. 

Riot police and water cannons stood on alert on May 31 as Taksim Square and Gezi Park, alongside numerous roads and metro stations leading to Taksim, were closed to prevent gatherings called by Taksim Solidarity, a collective organization of several rights groups at the center of the Gezi Park protests, to commemorate the second anniversary of the nationwide anti-government protests. 

Taksim Square and Gezi Park, in addition to numerous other roads and streets, have been closed to the public on the second anniversary of the anti-government Gezi protests which spread across Turkey in protest at decisions taken under then-PM Recep Tayyip Erdo?an's leadership. 

A Turkish artist on May 30 unveiled a two-storey-high mural featuring those killed in protests two years ago over an Istanbul park that spiralled into nationwide demonstrations against the leadership of Tayyip Erdo?an.
   

Twenty-year-old Mehmet Ayval?ta?, 22-year-old Abdullah Cömert, 26-year-old Ethem Sar?sülük, 18-year-old Medeni Y?ld?r?m, 19-year-old Ali ?smail Korkmaz, 23-year-old Ahmet Atakan and 15-year-old Berkin Elvan? 

It has been two years since they were murdered during the Gezi Park incidents. 

Taksim Solidarity, a collective organization of several rights groups and NGOs at the center of the Gezi Park protests of 2013, called for a march to the central Istanbul park on May 31, the date marking the second anniversary of the mass protests that sent shockwaves through the country.

The Peoples' Democratic Party's (HDP) co-chair Selahattin Demirta? tweeted that the dispute with Istanbul Governor's Office over the party's upcoming rally at Istanbul's Kazl?çe?me Square was solved, with the demonstration to be held as planned. 

"The problem with our rally at Istanbul's Kazl?çe?me Square on May 30 is solved. We will be there at 3 p.m.," Demirta? wrote in his tweet. 

Expect the unexpected! This can be the new catchphrase of Istanbul these days. Every other day we hear of a new place opening in an unusual corner of the city; there seems to be more and more facets of this ever-changing town to explore.