Arrests don't stop protests against Nato Summit in Ankara, Istanbul and in all Turkey - info press/imagines

 

Anti-NATO Protesters Clash with Police During Ankara Summit

Protests in multiple cities lead to detentions as Türkiye tightens security for NATO summit with U.S. President Donald Trump

On the 7th, a poster criticizing French President Emmanuel Macron with the phrase 'We don't want Macron' is attached at a bus stop in Besiktas, Istanbul, Türkiye. Left-wing groups hold protests in line with the NATO summit taking place in the capital Ankara over two days from the 7th. /Courtesy of Seo Bo-beom

Amid the NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) summit held in Ankara, the capital of Türkiye, on July 7–8, tensions have escalated as leftist and socialist groups continue to hold anti-NATO rallies in major cities such as Istanbul and Izmir.

The "Istanbul Labor, Peace, and Democracy Solidarity," which includes the Turkish Communist Party (TKP), Socialist Workers' Party (SEP), and anti-imperialist youth and labor groups, gathered in front of the Atatürk Cultural Center (AKM) near Taksim Square in Istanbul on the afternoon of the 7th and marched toward Dolmabahçe Palace. They carried banners reading "Withdraw from NATO, Seize Bases, Overthrow Imperialism" and chanted slogans such as "Murderer NATO, Get Out," "Murderer America, Leave the Middle East," and "Down with Imperialism, Long Live People’s Solidarity."

Physical clashes occurred during an anti-NATO rally in Kadıköy, Istanbul, on the same day. According to the organizers, police detained participants of the "Youth Union Against NATO and Imperialist War" who were marching near the Kadıköy Port. The DEM’s Kadıköy branch claimed, "Youths exercising their democratic right to protest have been subjected to torture and detention," and demanded their release.

Rallies were held in multiple cities, including Ankara, Istanbul, Izmir, Adana, Samsun, and Çanakkale. In Ankara, police used tear gas to disperse TKP participants heading toward Kızılay Square, and the TKP reported that over 100 members and supporters were detained. According to Reuters, over 100 people were detained on terrorism charges during anti-NATO protests ahead of the summiturkey intensifies crackdown on public life in run-up to Nato summit in Ankara

More than 200 arrested in raids, comedian and journalists jailed, gay-friendly cruise turned away and protests banned

Authorities in Turkey have widened a crackdown on public life, arresting more than 200 people during raids across Ankara last month, jailing a comedian and blocking a cruise ship carrying LGBTQ+ passengers from docking in the run-up to the Nato summit in the capital.

The arrests followed a ban on demonstrations in Ankara that was put in place until 10 July. Human Rights Watch (HRW) said this was evidence of Turkey’s “ruthless intolerance of freedom of speech and assembly”. The watchdog group said the Nato summit, which starts on Tuesday, was taking place in the context of intensifying violations of basic rights, “including far-reaching restrictions on the main political opposition party, the media, and freedom of expression in general”.

Last week, the standup comedian Deniz Göktaş was arrested and put in pre-trial detention after arriving at Istanbul airport from a holiday. Göktaş was charged with “insulting the president” and “denigrating religious values” in relation to a show in which he referred to the Turkish president, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, as a dictator and made jokes about suicide bombers. The performance took place in Istanbul on 1 June and a recording was released on YouTube on 24 June. The video has been viewed nearly 9m times.

People call for the release of the Turkish comedian Deniz Göktaş in front of a courthouse in Istanbul on Friday. Photograph: Yasin Akgül/AFP/Getty Images

Prosecutions for criticising Recep Tayyip Erdoğan have risen sharply in recent years. Photograph: Piroschka Van De Wouw/Reuters

Right groups and opposition parties have long accused the Turkish authorities of muzzling free speech in the country, where prosecutions for criticising Erdoğan have risen sharply in recent years.

Istanbul rocked by mass protests over NATO summit

Thousands of people marched through the streets of Istanbul with demands directed at the 

In Istanbul, thousands of people took to the streets to protest against the NATO summit in Ankara. One of the participants in the rally stated that the demonstrators are opposed to holding the Alliance's meeting in Türkiye, according to AP.

Multi-thousand-person rally took place in Istanbul

In the center of Istanbul, thousands of people took part in a demonstration against the NATO Summit, which is taking place in Ankara.

Representatives of left-wing movements, pro-Palestinian organizations, and Kurdish political forces joined the action.

The column of protesters marched through the city's central streets. During the march, participants chanted anti-American slogans, including: "Killers, USA, get out of our country."

What the rally participants said

One of the rally participants, 21-year-old Ali Gültekin, explained that the demonstrators are opposed to holding the NATO summit on Turkish territory.

"We are here to protest the hosting in Ankara — at a cost of millions of dollars — of NATO, an organization we regard as a massacre machine established to preserve global hegemony," he said.

The action took place against the backdrop of the NATO summit in the Turkish capital, which has sparked protest demonstrations in the country's largest city.