Report: Police detain 15 in Istanbul raids

ISTANBUL (AP) — Turkish media reports say police have launched dawn raids on at least three Istanbul neighborhoods, including one that was the scene of violent anti-government protests last week, and detained at least 15 people.

The state-run Anadolu Agency says police, including special operation teams backed by a helicopter, cordoned off Istanbul’s Okmeydani neighborhood on Monday and detained people suspected of involvement in clashes with police in which two people died. There were similar raids on two other neighborhoods.

Anadolu said police seized fire bombs and fireworks during the raids.

Clashes broke out last week when more than a dozen youths hurled stones and firebombs at police while protesting the deaths of 301 people in a coal mine disaster, and the death of a 15-year-old boy following last year’s nationwide anti-government demonstrations.

Copyright 2014 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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