Demonstrations that began on May 28th, 2013 to protect Gezi Park and turned into protests demanding basic rights and freedoms in reaction to the police use of violence, spread across Turkey and continue on June 24th, the 28th day of protests.
In the morning of June 18th 2013, Anti-Terror Police raided several building of the Socialist Party of the Oppressed (ESP), the Community Houses (Halkevleri), the Independent Revolutionary Class Platform (BDSP), Odak Journal, Özgür Radio, Etkin News Agency and Atılım newspapers and domiciles of their members, workers and readers, especially in İstanbul and Ankara.
Of those who were taken into custody during the raid, 18 were arrested for “being
member of illegal organization” and “damaging public property”.
Of the 12 people who were taken into custody in Adana, two were arrested.
The number of people who were arrested since the protests began reached 28.
The police forces attacked protesters in Ankara and İstanbul on June 22nd and 23rd by firing chemical tear gas and using pressurized water.
According to the Turkish Medical Association, 7836 people were injured in protests
across Turkey as of June 20th. Unfortunately, four people who tried to protest
and one police officer lost their life. Two protesters were killed by direct police violence.
The autopsy report revealed that Abdullah Cömert died because he had received a gas canisters in the head, in Antakya on June 3rd, 2013.
Ethem Sarısülük died after being directly shot in the head by a police officer in
Ankara. However, the police officer accused of killing Ethem Sarısülük has been released by the court. Although the video shows that the police officer was not in a life threatening situation and that Ethem Sarısülük was unarmed, the justification for releasing him was that he acted in self-defense.
Mehmet Ayvalıtaş died after being crashed by a car which was
intentionally driven into crowds in Ümraniye, İstanbul, on June 2nd, 2013.
Mehmet Sarı, a police officer, felt down from a bridge and lost his life while running after protestors in Adana on June 5th, 2013.
Zeynep Eryaşar, who attented the protest, suffered a heart attack and lost her life after having been exposed to chemical tear gas in Avcılar, İstanbul.
The number of people who were detained across Turkey as of June 19th, 2013 has
reached 3316 according to HRFT data. The number of people who have been arrested is 74.
48 people were detained because of the Twitter messages they sent.
According to declarations made by the Ministry of Interior on June 22th, 2013, protest occured all around Turkey except in Bayburt and Bingöl. 2,5 million people attended the protests. 4,900 people were taken into custody and 4,000 people were wounded. 14 buildings of political party got damaged.