Turkish authorities detained at least 575 people who tried to march in areas they had closed off during International Workers’ Day celebrations in Istanbul on Friday. The mass arrests came one day after the country’s highest constitutional court ruled that holding protesters for nearly two months during a similar demonstration last year violated their right to peaceful assembly.
Small groups of demonstrators kept emerging around Taksim Square throughout the day, attempting to breach police blockades. The square has been a no-go zone for May Day protests for years, a restriction authorities maintain on security grounds after more than 30 people were killed in violence there during a 1977 May Day gathering. About 2.5 miles away, hundreds more protesters gathered in the Mecidiyekoy district, where police responded with water cannons and pepper spray before detaining participants, according to local media reports and witness accounts circulated online.
The detainments were the largest on May Day since the Constitutional Court’s ruling on Thursday, which found that the 58-day detention of three demonstrators arrested during 2024’s May Day events had breached their rights. Rights groups have long pressed Turkish authorities to align protest policing with that precedent.
In a statement, the Istanbul governor’s office defended the police actions. “The public had been informed of the safety precautions beforehand,” it said. “Certain marginal groups dismissed the precautions, and clashed with police officers as they do every year.” The statement said 575 people had been detained by 6 p.m. Friday.