Riot police attack Kurds celebrating Newroz in Turkey

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Dozens have been injured after Police tried to prevent Newroz celebrations in Diyarbakir, and elsewhere in Istanbul one Kurdish MP was injured. Riot police used pepper spray and tear-gas on Kurdish civilians who were on their way to celebrate Newroz. In many areas, police tried to prevent Kurds reaching the main square where thousands will celebrate Newroz.

Turkish police, according to Yekun Alp who was in Diyarbakir and wanted to get into the ‘celebration area’ designated for today threw stones at people.

We sent one of our European correspondents to Diyarbakir last week. In a brief statement she told us; ‘We are being attacked by water canons, tear-gas’ and ‘we’ve been running away from them trying to bypass riot police’. Later on, she was able to unite with thousands of other Kurds who wanted to celebrate Newroz. Here are some of the pictures from Diyarbakir:

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