Turkish lawmaker claims his nose was broken in police attack

ISTANBUL

Ramis Topal, a main oposition Republican People’s Party deputy, was injured during last evening’s police raid on Istanbul’s central Gezi Park. DHA photo

Ramis Topal, a main opposition Republican People’s Party deputy, was among those injured during last evening’s police raid on Istanbul’s central Gezi Park, the center of the protests that have shaken the city.

Topal’s nose was broken as he was standing by people who escaped to the entrance of Divan Hotel, daily Radikal has reported on its website.

 “A policeman threw a helmet right into my face, aiming [at me],” the newspaper quoted Topal as saying.

The lawmaker said he went to the park because his compatriots from the Black Sea region of Amasya, who were among the protesters, called for help.

Police also kicked him as he was trying to prevent a gas attack in the hotel, where some injured people were treated, while his daughter was accompanying him, Topal said.

There were injured people in the hotel and three or four of them were children, he added.

He had shown his lawmaker ID to the police, he said.