Turkish police detain 20 for ‘violent protests’

ANKARA, TURKEY — Turkish police on Tuesday detained at least 20 people allegedly involved in violent protests, as the country’s prime minister continued to lash out at protesters he claimed were part of a conspiracy to harm Turkey.

Meanwhile, hundreds of protesters marched to Istanbul’s central Taksim square, to denounce a court decision that freed, pending trial, a police officer accused of killing a demonstrator during the anti- government protests that swept the country since May 31. Police surrounded the square, blocking their access.

At least three demonstrators and a police officer were killed in the protests that began in Istanbul following a police clampdown on peaceful activists and quickly turned into widespread expression of discontent with what critics have said is Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s increasingly authoritarian way of governing.

One of the protesters was killed by a bullet fired by police during a demonstration in Ankara on June 1. A court on Monday released the officer from custody pending trial, on the grounds that the shooting may have been accidental. But some see the release as proof that Turkish authorities are lenient on police.

The state-run Anadolu Agency said police searched some 30 addresses in the capital Ankara and rounded up 20 people with alleged links to “terror” groups and suspected of “attacking police and the environment” during the protests.

Erdogan holds unspecified foreign forces, bankers and media outlets responsible for the protests that had largely subsided until the court freed the police officer.

In an address to members of his Islamic-rooted party in parliament, Erdogan reiterated that the protests were orchestrated by forces wanting to prevent Turkey’s rise.

“From the start, some people, internally and externally, have tried to portray the protests as totally innocent and just, and the police of having systematically used force,” Erdogan said. “Certain media in Turkey were lead provocateurs. The foreign media took part in these operations.”