Kostas Tsironis / AP
A protester throws a gasoline bomb toward riot police during clashes in Taksim Square in Istanbul on Tuesday.
ISTANBUL – Hundreds of riot police clashed with protesters in Istanbul’s Taksim Square on Tuesday, as protests against the government of Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan intensified.
The latest violence began Tuesday morning when police moved past barriers and into the square to scatter a small number of people who have been camped there to protest redevelopment of the square.
Hundreds more protesters nearby, many wearing gas masks, joined to charge toward police, throwing Molotov cocktails and rocks, and police responded with round after round of tear gas canisters and frequent blasts from water cannons.
Tourists fled hotels near the square, covering their mouths with napkins, as clouds of noxious gas spread over a large area downwind of the center of the protests.
Police used megaphones to urge protesters to keep back and stop throwing missiles, but their pleas had little effect.
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Protests that started as an outcry against a local development project in Taksim Square have snowballed into widespread anger against what critics say is the government's increasingly conservative and authoritarian agenda.
A police vehicle and a water cannon burned as Molotov cocktails, or gasoline bombs, found their targets.
The protests began May 31 after police cracked down on what had been a peaceful demonstration against redevelopment of the park, which would remove a considerable chunk of rare green space in the sprawling city.
The clashes have grown since, with the square becoming symbolic of greater dissatisfaction with Erdogan’s government.
The prime minister has recently imposed restrictions on the sale of alcohol, altered social security, separated children by sex in primary and secondary schools and emphasized religious holidays over national ones.
Initial clashes grew after Erdogan returned from a trip abroad and ordered an immediate end to the protests. His tone toward them has been dismissive, and he has called them them looters who are “arm in arm with terrorists.”
Protests have spread to other cities as Erdogan has remained defiant and police have cracked down.
NBC News’ Jim Maceda contributed to this report.
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