The fiercest anti-government demonstrations in Turkey in years have entered their fourth day with protesters and riot police clashing in major cities.
In Istanbul, where some of the heaviest clashes took place overnight on Sunday, bus shelters, paving stones and street signs were ripped up by protesters to make barricades. Roads around Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan's office in the city were sealed off as police fired volleys of teargas to push back people.
In the western port city of Izmir, protesters threw fire bombs at the offices of the ruling AK party.
The protests were sparked on Friday by plans to build on Gezi Park near Taksim Square in Istanbul, but has broadened into nationwide anti-government unrest in which tens of thousands have taken part.
Many people are fed up with the government, which they believe is becoming increasingly authoritarian and trying to impose Islamic values on the country, which is officially secular, the BBC reports. Last week, it passed legislation curbing the sale and advertising of alcoholic drinks.
Water cannons were again used to hold back civilians on Sunday, who are calling for the resignation of the Prime Minister.
Social media sites have been rife with speculation that a new form of gas is being used by authorities that has far more serious effects than the pepper spray and tear gas that marked the clashes in Taksim Square on Friday, the BBC reports.
Coughing violently and, in some cases, vomiting, demonstrators were caught in the crush to escape the canisters that were being fired indiscriminately by police. Mosques, shops and a university have been turned into makeshift hospitals in the city to deal with the injured.
Unrest was also reported in the capital, Ankara, and protests took place in dozens of other towns and cities. Officials say more than 1700 people had been arrested during protests in 67 cities, though many have since been released.
Democracy being undermined - PM
The Prime Minister accuses his opponents of using the anger over the Gezi Park issue to stir up wider tensions.
In an interview on state television on Sunday, Recep Erdogan said the protests were being provoked by the opposition Republican People's Party and that those taking part were trying to undermine democracy.
"They have been removing pavestones and breaking the windows of local stores. Is this democracy?" he asked, dismissing the protesters as "a few looters".
He rejected accusations that he was a "dictator", saying he was a person who had "committed himself to serving his nation".
Mr Erdogan also criticised social media, through which the protests have been co-ordinated and discussed. He said Twitter was a "curse" and an "extreme version of lying. I think social media as a whole is a pain in the side of society."
However, on Saturday, he admitted there had been "some mistakes, extremism in police response".
