173 May Day demonstrators released, 18 to be prosecuted

ISTANBUL – Doğan News Agency

Prosecutors had demanded additional time up to three times for extended detention periods. DHA Photo

Up to 173 people who were detained during May Day demonstrations in Istanbul last week were released late May 4 and early May 5 after being interrogated by prosecutors.

Prosecutors sent 18 demonstrators to court, demanding the arrest of one of them, according to Doğan News Agency.

The court ruled to release all demonstrators under probation. The demands by prosecutors for extended detention had infuriated the opposition, which denounced the demand as “a political act.”

Istanbul witnessed another tense May Day, after the province’s governor refused to permit rallies in the city’s iconic Taksim Square.

Police took extraordinary security measures to prevent groups marching to Taksim Square, attacking thousands of demonstrators with tear gas and water cannon as they tried to defy the ban.