Stay away Istanbul as Turkey riots continue
Sorry for those who have planned so well ahead to travel to Istanbul these days, eventhough now (late May to early June) is the best time to visit Turkey with its temperate weather and lesser rainfall. Unfortunately, I have to urge fellow travelers out there to stay away Istanbul and Turkey at least for these coming days or weeks as unprecedented major protests and anti-government demonstrations in all major cities which turned into riots have been continuing for 4 days now since last Friday.
As you can see from the video above (thanks to Al Jazeera), major cities of Turkey including Istanbul and Ankara have seen violent demonstrations since Friday, when police launched a dawn raid against a peaceful sit-in protesting plans to cut down trees in Istanbul’s main Taksim Square. Since then, the demonstrations by mostly secular-minded Turks have spiraled into Turkey’s biggest anti-government disturbances in years, challenging Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s power.
Riot police fired tear gas and water cannons at demonstrators at Taksim Square in Istanbul, hence turned this beautiful and popular travel destination into chaos.
Travelers who are planning to visit Turkey especially Istanbul are urged to defer or postpone their plan to a later date. I understand how disappointing it is to call our well-planned tour off but, our safety always comes first. I’ve personally experienced the way Turks demonstrates on streets and that could be harsh to most of the foreign visitors.
Keep an eye on the situation and let’s hope the Turkey riots will come to an end very soon. Otherwise, you can change your Europe tour itinerary to other destinations such as Barcelona or Rome! 🙂 – Travel Feeder
About The Author
Cecil Lee
The author is an avid traveler and photography hobbyist who loves to share with others his travel and photo-taking experience in many popular tourist destinations around Europe, Asia and Australasia. Read the exciting stories with many photos captured on his journeys.
