Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Thursday accused his opponents of trying to stir up chaos ahead of key local elections later this month, a day after clashes in which two people died. Erdogan said demonstrators had destroyed the Istanbul offices of his Justice and Development Party (AKP) during mass protests Wednesday, sparked by the death of a teenage boy who was hurt during violent clashes with police last year.
Speaking at an election rally in the southern Mersin province, the premier lashed out at what he called "ugly attempts" to manipulate local elections, due on March 30. "They are trying to get results by provoking and terrorising the streets," he said. At least two people died during riots Wednesday after tens of thousands turned out to mourn a 15-year-old boy who died from injuries suffered in anti-government protests last year.
Angry crowds shouted slogans, including "Killer Tayyip," during the funeral of Berkin Elvan, who died nine months after he was hit by a tear gas canister while going to buy bread during the protests. One of the casualties was named as 22-year-old Burak Can Karamanoglu, who was shot dead during clashes between protesters and government supporters in Istanbul, according to local media. "I am suffering today and someone else will be suffering tomorrow," the man's father Halil Karamanoglu was quoted as saying. "We will always be in unity. We will not let anyone divide this country." Erdogan said the Revolutionary People's Liberation Front, a Marxist group blamed for several terror attacks in Turkey since the 1970s, had claimed responsibility for the killing. A 30-year-old policeman also died of a heart attack as officers confronted protesters in the eastern town of Tunceli. The violence comes as Erdogan's administration grapples to contain the fallout of the largest corruption scandal in Turkey's history.
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