Turkish police used water cannons and tear gas on Thursday against hundreds of May Day protesters who sought to march in Taksim Square, the focal point of weeks of protests last summer, in defiance of Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and his administration.
Despite the lifting of a 32-year ban on May Day celebrations in Taksim Square in 2010, the Turkish government reinstituted the ban last year. Erdoğan had warned last week that he wouldn't allow protesters in Taksim Square. The prime minister has cast both last summer's street protests and a corruption scandal dogging his government since December as part of a plot to undermine him.
Demonstrators in Istanbul, looking to defy the government ban, were met by about 40,000 police officers, who blocked roads, fired tear gas canisters and used water cannons in an attempt to prevent protesters from making their way to Taksim square, The New York Times reported.
Some 40 people were hospitalized and around 160 detained, according to the Progressive Lawyers Association, Reuters reported.
Meanwhile, Cambodian protesters also clashed with police in Phnom Penh, Cambodia's capital, in defiance of a ban on demonstrations that has been in place since January. In Rostock, Germany, riot police had to forcibly remove sitting protesters, who were blocking the streets.
Despite the violence that has marred some May Day demonstrations, the world continues to celebrate what is also known as International Workers' Day each May 1. Elsewhere, protests and demonstrations were relatively calm in such cities as London, Paris and Valencia.
Here's a look in photos at several May Day demonstrations and celebrations around the world:
Public health workers march through Havana's Revolution Square during the May Day parade.Reuters/Enrique De La OsaA protester shoots firecrackers at riot police during a May Day demonstration in Istanbul.Reuters/Murad SezerA protester reacts as police fires tear gas during a May Day demonstration in Istanbul.Reuters/Cevahir BuguProtesters advance towards riot police during a May Day demonstration in IstanbulReuters/Can ErokRiot police take up position during a May Day demonstration in Istanbul, May 1, 2014. Turkish police fired water cannon and tear gas on Thursday to prevent hundreds of protesters from defying a ban on May Day rallies and reaching Istanbul's central Taksim Square, the focal point of weeks of protests last summer.Reuters/Serkan SenturkPeople take part in a demonstration during May Day in Berlin, May 1, 2014. The placard reads: "Resistance to crisis. Uprise revolution."Reuters/Thomas PeterGerman riot police remove sitting protesters blocking the street during May Day demonstrations in Rostock.Reuters/Tobias SchwarzCrowds fill Trafalgar Square during the annual May Day rally in London May 1, 2014.Reuters/Luke MacGregorWorkers of the Krasmash military plant carry placards with the Soviet Union's state awards during a march to celebrate International Workers' Day, or Labour Day, in Russia's Siberian city of Krasnoyarsk.Reuters/Ilya NaymushinPro-democracy lawmaker Leung Kwok-hung, also known as "Long Hair," sticks a protest sign in support of a strike by workers of Yue Yuen Industrial Holdings, in Dongguan, during International Labor Day in Hong Kong, May 1, 2014.Reuters/Tyrone SiuA group of protesters sit in the street in front of Swiss riot police officers during a May Day demonstration in Zurich.Reuters/Arnd WiegmannA man tries to protects himself as security forces beat him during the International Workers' Day rally at Freedom Park, in Phnom Penh, May 1, 2014.Reuters/Samrang PringWorkers and union members hold banners and flags of the General Workers Union and Comisiones Obreras at La Constitucion square during a May Day demonstration on Labor Day in Malaga, southern Spain, May 1, 2014. The banner reads, "Without quality employment, there is no recovery. More social cohesion for more democracy."Reuters/Jon NazcaA member of the Communist Youth Union of Spain takes part in May Day celebrations in Madrid.Reuters/Javier BarbanchoHundreds of supporters of France's far right National Front political party wave flags as they attend the party's annual May Day rally in Paris.Reuters/Charles PlatiauA workers shouts slogans as he stands on top of a van next to a portrait of late Chinese Communist Party leader Mao Zedong during a protest against migrant workers from mainland China and other countries, as well as government corruption, on International Labor Day in Macau.Reuters/Tyrone SiuSupporters of the Iraqi Communist Party chant slogans during an International Worker's Day, or Labor Day, rally in Baghdad May 1, 2014.Reuters/Thaier Al-SudaniSupporters of the Iraqi Communist Party celebrate during an International Worker's Day, or Labor Day, rally in Baghdad.Reuters/Thaier Al-SudaniIgnacio Fernandez Toxo and Candido Mendez, general secretaries of Spain's leading trade unions CCOO and UGT, march as they are flanked by Basque CCOO and UGT leaders Unai Sordo and Raul Arza during May Day celebrations in Bilbao.Reuters/Vincent WestA woman holds a flag as she takes part in a rally to commemorate International Workers' Day, or Labor Day, in Luhansk, eastern Ukraine, May 1, 2014.Reuters/Vasily FedosenkoUkrainians march to commemorate International Workers' Day, or Labor Day, in Luhansk, eastern Ukraine.Reuters/Vasily FedosenkoIndonesian Workers' Unions members take part in a May Day rally with their faces painted at the business district in Jakarta, May 1, 2014.Reuters/BeawihartaWorkers spell "160$" with balloons as they demand an increase in minimum wage from US$100 to US$160 per month during the International Workers' Day rally at Freedom Park in Phnom Penh.Reuters/Samrang Pring
