Anti-government protests have swept Turkey over the last weekend as people demonstrate at what they see as an increasingly authoritarian government.
Two people have so far died.
Deputy prime minister, Bulent Arinc, was forced to issue an apology for the police response which has included tear gas and water cannon.
In an echo of the Arab Spring protests of 2011 an unexpected yet creative facet of the protests is the ingenuity of the protection fashioned by those involved...
Tear Gas Masks During Turkey Riots
(01 of12)
A man wears a mask during the third day of nationwide anti-government protest at Taksim square in Istanbul, Sunday, June 2, 2013. Turkey's prime minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Sunday rejected claims that he is a "dictator," dismissing protesters as an extremist fringe, even as thousands returned to the landmark Istanbul square that has become the site of the fiercest anti-government outburst in years. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis) (credit:AP)
Tensions Grow As Demonstrations Against The Government Continue In Istanbul(02 of12)
ISTANBUL, TURKEY - JUNE 03: A protestor covers her face during clashes with Turkish police near Turkish prime minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan office, between Taksim and Besiktas on June 3, 2013 in Istanbul, Turkey. The protests began initially over the fate of Taksim Gezi Park, one of the last significant green spaces in the center of the city. The heavy-handed viewed response of the police, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his government's increasingly authoritarian agenda has broadened the rage of the clashes. (Photo by Uriel Sinai/Getty Images) (credit:Getty Images)
TURKEY-POLITICS-UNREST(03 of12)
A man with a painted face gestures as people demonstrate in Ankara on June 4, 2013, during ongoing protests against the ruling party, police brutality, and the destruction of Taksim park in Istanbul for the sake of a development project. Turkey's Islamic-rooted government apologised today to wounded protestors and said it had 'learnt its lesson' after days of mass street demonstrations that have posed the biggest challenge to Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's decade in office. Turkish police had on June 1 begun pulling out of Istanbul's iconic Taksim Square, after a second day of violent clashes between protesters and police over a controversial development project. What started as an outcry against a local development project has snowballed into widespread anger against what critics say is the government's increasingly conservative and authoritarian agenda. AFP PHOTO / MARCO LONGARI (Photo credit should read MARCO LONGARI/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:Getty Images)
TURKEY-POLITICS-UNREST(04 of12)
Protesters shout anti-government slogans during a demonstration in Ankara on June 4, 2013. Turkey's Islamic-rooted government said Tuesday it had 'learnt its lesson' and appealed for an end to mass street protests that have convulsed the country for days in the worst political crisis in a decade. The United Nations joined Washington in pressing for a full investigation into allegations of excessive use of police force against anti-government demonstrators while Turkey's main union federation launched a two-day strike over what it branded 'state terror'. AFP PHOTO / ADEM ALTAN (Photo credit should read ADEM ALTAN/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:Getty Images)
"Occupy Taksim Gezi Park" Protests Continue in Istanbul(05 of12)
ISTANBUL, TURKEY - JUNE 04: Protestors continue with their sit-in protest on the 6th day of the demonstration against the demolition of the park and the building of a shopping mall in Taksim Gezi Park on June 4, 2013 in Istanbul, Turkey. Initially a protest over the fate of Taksim Gezi Park, one of the last significant green spaces in the center of the city, it has broadened into anger over what has been seen as a heavy-handed response of the police and Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his government's increasingly authoritarian agenda. (Photo by Selin Alemdar/Getty Images) (credit:Getty Images)
(06 of12)
A protester with a plastic wrap on her head stands next to a barricade during clashes in Istanbul early Tuesday, June 4, 2013. Turkish riot police launched round after round of tear gas against protesters on Monday, the fourth day of violent demonstrations, as the president and the prime minister staked competing positions on the unrest. Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan rejected the protesters' demands that he resign and dismissed the demonstrations as the work of Turkey's opposition. President Abdullah Gul, for his part, praised the mostly peaceful protesters as expressing their democratic rights. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis) (credit:AP)
(07 of12)
Protesters pass bricks to each other as they try to form a barricade near Taksim Square in Istanbul, late Monday, June 3, 2013. Turkish riot police launched round after round of tear gas against protesters on Monday, the fourth day of violent demonstrations, as the president and the prime minister staked competing positions on the unrest. Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan rejected the protesters' demands that he resign and dismissed the demonstrations as the work of Turkey's opposition. President Abdullah Gul, for his part, praised the mostly peaceful protesters as expressing their democratic rights. (AP Photo/Kostas Tsironis) (credit:AP)
Tensions Grow As Demonstrations Against The Government Continue In Istanbul(08 of12)
ISTANBUL, TURKEY - JUNE 04: Protestors cover their faces with plastic during clashes with Turkish police near Turkish prime minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan office, between Taksim and Besiktas, early morning on June 4, 2013 in Istanbul, Turkey. The protests began initially over the fate of Taksim Gezi Park, one of the last significant green spaces in the center of the city. The heavy-handed viewed response of the police, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his government's increasingly authoritarian agenda has broadened the rage of the clashes. (Photo by Uriel Sinai/Getty Images)Ê (Photo by Uriel Sinai/Getty Images) (credit:Getty Images)
TURKEY-POLITICS-DEMO(09 of12)
A man leaves from clash site between Taksim and Besiktas in Istanbul on June 4, 2013 during a demonstration against the demolition of the park. Turkish police on June 1 began pulling out of Istanbul's iconic Taksim Square, after a second day of violent clashes between protesters and police over a controversial development project. Thousands of demonstrators flooded the site as police lifted the barricades around the park and began withdrawing from the square. What started as an outcry against a local development project has snowballed into widespread anger against what critics say is the government's increasingly conservative and authoritarian agenda.AFP PHOTO / ARIS MESSINIS (Photo credit should read ARIS MESSINIS/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:Getty Images)
TURKEY-POLITICS-PROTEST(10 of12)
A woman protestor flashes V-sign during the clashes near Taksim in Istanbul on June 3, 2013 during a demonstration against the demolition of the park. Turkish police on June 1 began pulling out of Istanbul's iconic Taksim Square, after a second day of violent clashes between protesters and police over a controversial development project. Thousands of demonstrators flooded the site as police lifted the barricades around the park and began withdrawing from the square. What started as an outcry against a local development project has snowballed into widespread anger against what critics say is the government's increasingly conservative and authoritarian agenda. AFP PHOTO / OZAN KOSE (Photo credit should read OZAN KOSE/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:Getty Images)
TURKEY-POLITICS-UNREST(11 of12)
A Turkish demonstrators protest in front of the prime minister's office in Ankara on June 4, 2013. Turkey's Islamic-rooted government said on June 4 it had 'learnt its lesson' and appealed for an end to mass street protests that have convulsed the country for days in the worst political crisis in a decade. AFP PHOTO / MARCO LONGARI (Photo credit should read MARCO LONGARI/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:Getty Images)
TURKEY-POLITICS-PROTEST(12 of12)
A masked protestor flashes a V-sign during the clashes near Taksim in Istanbul on June 3, 2013 during a demonstration against the demolition of the park. Turkish police on June 1 began pulling out of Istanbul's iconic Taksim Square, after a second day of violent clashes between protesters and police over a controversial development project. Thousands of demonstrators flooded the site as police lifted the barricades around the park and began withdrawing from the square. What started as an outcry against a local development project has snowballed into widespread anger against what critics say is the government's increasingly conservative and authoritarian agenda. AFP PHOTO / OZAN KOSE (Photo credit should read OZAN KOSE/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:Getty Images)