Turkish protesters say they will continue their campaign against a government plan to redevelop a park in Istanbul despite a warning by Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan for them to leave the park.
Representatives of Taksim Solidarity said in a statement on Saturday that the protesters refuse to leave Taksim Square and an adjacent park in central Istanbul.
Taksim Solidarity is an umbrella group for protesters who have been holding rallies against the redevelopment for more than 2 weeks.
The statement said the government is trying to divide and provoke the protesters and damage their legitimacy.
Representatives of the group met the prime minister in the capital Ankara on Friday.
Erdogan agreed to suspend work on part of the development project and called on the demonstrators to withdraw from the park.
Erdogan met the representatives after he issued what he called a final warning to the protesters on Thursday.
He has not ruled out the use of force to end the protest.
Jun. 15, 2013 - Updated 13:11 UTC
the political situation is uneasy, the Islam zone is not suitable for the Olympics site
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