Istanbul police disperse pro-Assad protesters

ISTANBUL

A Syrian woman holds a picture of President Bashar al-Assad as other protestors fly Palestinian and pre-Baath Syrian flags during a demonstration to mark Land Day in Damascus on March 30, 201 AFP Photo

Police have dispersed a group of pro-Assad Syrians holding a protest near the location where the Friends of Syrian People meeting was held in Istanbul today.

Police officers used tear gas to disperse the group, daily Hürriyet reported.

A group rallying to show support for the embattled Syrian government gathered this morning in Istanbul’s Harbiye neighborhood, close to where international players are holding the second the “Friends of Syrian People”meeting.
 
Nearly 300 demonstrators carried posters of Syria's Bashar al-Assad and flags of Russia and China, while shouting pro-al-Assad slogans in Arabic, private broadcaster NTV reported on its website.
 
Security forces intervened when the group tried to march down to the Hilton Hotel where the meeting is taking place.
 
An unknown person stepped out of his car amid protests and yelled toward the group, according to Doğan news agency. The man, reportedly a supporter of the Syrian opposition, then drove away when the angry group began marching toward him.
 
The demonstrations are still continuing.