From the Liveblog of
Sunday, July 9, 2017
Tens of thousands at Turkish opposition’s ‘justice’ rally in Istanbul
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on GoogleTens of thousands of people gather for a rally of Turkey’s main opposition party in Istanbul, the biggest protest event in several years by critics of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
A sea of people filled the vast shoreside square in Maltepe, on the Asian side of Istanbul, for the rally marking the end of a 450-kilometer (280-mile) “justice march” from Ankara to Istanbul by Republican People’s Party (CHP) leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu, an AFP correspondent says.
He takes the stage.Crowd chants "Hak,Hukuk,Adalet!!!" "Rights, Law, Justice!!!" #JusticeMarch #justicerally #istanbul #Turkey pic.twitter.com/NLiydJAgzF
— Nil Köksal (@nilkoksalcbc) July 9, 2017
Kilicdaroglu began the 25-day trek to protest the arrest of one of his MPs and it rapidly grew into a major march protesting alleged injustices under Erdogan’s rule.
“Nobody should think this march is the last one. It’s the first step,” Kilicdaroglu tells the crowds who roared back with the word “Justice!”
The rally is by far the biggest by the opposition seen in Istanbul since the mass May-June 2013 demonstrations against Erdogan’s rule sparked by the planned redevelopment of Gezi Park in the city.
— AFP
The Times of Israel Community.