Turkey protesters to stay put in park

Turkey protesters  to stay put in park
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Istanbul (AFP): Turkish protesters hunkered down in an Istanbul park on Friday, rejecting an olive branch the government had hoped would end two weeks...

TurkyIstanbul (AFP): Turkish protesters hunkered down in an Istanbul park on Friday, rejecting an olive branch the government had hoped would end two weeks of nationwide civil unrest. Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's offer to halt the redevelopment of Gezi park that first ignited the protests was presented as a major concession but after conferring all night the protesters said their movement was about something bigger than a conservation struggle. "We will continue our resistance in the face of any injustice and unfairness taking place in our country," the Taksim Solidarity group, seen as most representative of the protesters, said in a statement. "This is only the beginning." The decision looked set to inflame tensions a day after Erdogan offered to halt the Gezi Park redevelopment until a court ruled on its legality, his first major conciliatory gesture yet in a bid to end the biggest challenge of his Islamist-rooted government's decade-long rule. Tens of thousands of supporters of Erodgan's ruling Justice and Development Party are expected to take to the streets of the capital on Saturday, in what has been billed as a show of strength for the embattled PM.
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