Women in Turkey brave ban on Istanbul march, get tear-gassed

By MEHMET GUZEL and ZEYNEP BILGINSOY
Associated Press

ISTANBUL (AP) — Women in Turkey have braved an official ban on an International Women’s Day march in Istanbul, demonstrating for about two hours before police used tear gas to disperse remaining protestors and detained several people. Thousands converged on a central neighborhood Wednesday for a protest that combined women’s rights with the staggering toll of the deadly quake that hit Turkey and Syria a month ago. Organizers had been forbidden — for the second straight year — from marching down the popular Istiklal pedestrian avenue where Women’s Day marches were held since 2003. Police blocked demonstrators’ access to the avenue and broke up the protest with tear gas. An Associated Press journalist saw officers detain at least 30 people.