About 20 people have been arrested, the news agency reports. A photojournalist is also among the detainees. Footage shows police carrying out charges against the demonstrators.
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There is still a cat-and-mouse game going on in Istanbul between the protesters and the police, says correspondent Olaf Koens.
“There are still about a hundred protesters, who are being hunted and shot at with tear gas. They hide in buildings again, or are taken care of in people’s homes.”
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Until a few years ago, the annual pride parade in Istanbul attracted tens of thousands of visitors, but in recent years the demonstration has been suppressed by the Turkish authorities.
“Turkey is becoming more and more conservative, so all forms of protest are being suppressed,” says Koens. “So is the pride parade. But thousands of people still come every year.”
Banned every year since 2015
In 2015, the parade was canceled an hour before the start, and the police used water cannons against the participants. Since then, the pride parade has been banned every year.
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“We stand against the limitation of our space,” the organization of the parade wrote in a statement ahead of the demonstration. “We will not be stopped from standing up for our rights, our existence and our freedom.”
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