Ongoing protests in Istanbul's Taksim Gezi Park turned violent on June 11, 2013, with clashes between activists and riot police. Turkish riot police also fired water cannon and tear gas to disperse thousands of demonstrators in Turkey's capital Ankara on the worst night of violence in nearly two weeks of nationwide anti-government unrest. Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who critics say has pushed the country towards Islamization and damaged the heritage of secularist nation-builder Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, has taken an increasingly hard line against the protesters.
