Turkish authorities have released 372 of the 419 people detained during May Day protests in İstanbul, while 36 of them remain in police custody, according to the İstanbul branch of the Progressive Lawyers’ Association (ÇHD) on Friday.
The mass release comes after a heavy-handed police response to demonstrators attempting to march to Taksim Square on May 1, a location that has long been symbolic for labor rights groups but remains off-limits for May Day events under current government restrictions.
While the majority of those detained were freed overnight, 36 people, including several minors and lawyers, remain in custody. Some are expected to appear before prosecutors later on Friday.
According to the ÇHD, the detainees were held at multiple locations across the city. Among the detainees were 10 minors and 11 lawyers.
Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya said on X on Thursday that 407 protesters were detained in İstanbul, while a statement by İstanbul authorities said 52,656 police officers had been deployed in the city.
The May 1 protests were met with extraordinary security measures. İstanbul authorities had closed several central metro stations and deployed police across key neighborhoods to block access to Taksim Square. In the days leading up to the holiday, 100 people were preemptively detained for allegedly planning protests in the restricted area.
Taksim Square has remained closed to demonstrations since 2013, despite its historical significance as the site of a 1977 massacre in which 41 people were killed during a May Day demonstration.
Despite the releases, legal support groups say they will continue to monitor the cases of those still in custody and any potential prosecutions stemming from the demonstrations.