Events in Istanbul

Mixed messages coming out of Istanbul. 

Erdoagn's 24 hours is up.  Latest is that things are peaceful. Women have formed a human chain to protect the protestors. 

Video footage HERE

Meanwhile there is nothing coming out of Ankara - it seems communications have been shut down - "Creepy, every post I have come across from people actually residing in Ankara is dated no later than June 3...

Tear gas abates, music fills Turkey's Gezi Park

Istanbul's Gezi Park has seen days of sheer madness, but they have been punctuated with moments of beauty and joy.

CNN,

13 June, 2013, 10.40 GMT

The melancholic sounds from a grand piano echoed through the park in a moment of welcome serenity Wednesday. One that traveled all the way from Germany to Turkey, so its owner could play a song dedicated to the protesters.

Soon afterward, a video of the performance went viral on Facebook.

Demonstrators gathered around in the darkness as Davide Martello clinked out his original composition "Lightsoldiers."

Masks and scarves used earlier to weaken the sting of teargas dangled from their necks. Hard hats used to abate the thud of flying gas canisters and stones dotted heads in the audience.

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A cultural microcosm

The slice of life amid the mayhem was not a rare moment.

In between their protest chants and water cannon dousings, demonstrators have spent the last two weeks camping out in one of the inner city's last green spaces -- the charming park they are attempting to save from bull dozers.

The have transformed it into a cultural microcosm.

Protesters have set up stations offering free food. Hordes of demonstrators have stood on pastel yoga mats in the sunlight, stretching their limbs to the sky. Others have sprawled out on the ground in clusters, musing over books on loan from an impromptu library.

At least one couple has tied the knot.

The violent eruptions of stone-throwing protesters clashing with police have led nearby galleries to shutter and have nixed scheduled concerts, local newspaper Hurriyet reported.

As a result, many artists have strolled into the park to participate in the demonstrations. Popular TV actors have joined them, Hurriyet said.

'Good night Istanbul'

Martello, who built his piano himself and outfitted it with lighting and heating to allow him to play in the dark and the cold, dragged it down in a trailer from his hometown of Konstanz, Germany. On his way, he stopped in Bulgaria and Kosovo to give outdoor concerts there.

Aside from "Lightsoldiers," he also tapped out a rendition of Paul McCartney's "Let it be."

"And when the night is cloudy there is still a light that shines on me. Shine until tomorrow, let it be," he sang.

He left a message on Facebook for the protesters.

"Good night Istanbul, tomorrow I will playing again on the square for freedom and our rights."

Tear gas permitting.

Turkish protesters reject Erdogan ultimatum to leave Istanbul park

Anti-government protesters in the Turkish city of Istanbul have rejected an ultimatum issued by Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan to evacuate a park next to the landmark Taksim Square

Press TV,

13 June, 2013, 5.32 GMT

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On Thursday, demonstrators converged once again on the park despite the stern 24-hour warning to leave the site.

Earlier in the day, Erdogan issued a "last warning" for thousands of protesters to evacuate Gezi Park.

"I'm making my last warning: mothers, fathers please withdraw your kids from there," he said in a live television broadcast.

The death toll from clashes between anti-government protesters and police in Turkey has reached five. The latest victim was a 26-year-old protester who succumbed to injuries he had sustained on June 1.

Meanwhile, the Turkish government has said it is ready to hold a referendum on Gezi Park development project in an attempt to put an end the ongoing protests in the country.

The anti-government unrest began after police broke up a sit-in staged in Taksim Square on May 31 to protest against the demolition of Gezi Park.

The protesters say the park, which is a traditional gathering point for rallies and demonstrations as well as a popular tourist destination, is the city's last green public space.

Amnesty International has censured the Turkish police for the tactics they have used to control the protests.