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Outside Taksim, Turkey Faces Polarization

Women wearing headscarves report being harassed.
People walk past a poster depicting Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan that has been pasted by demonstrators at Taksim Square in Istanbul June 5, 2013. Protesters clashed with police across Turkey overnight despite an apology for police violence from the deputy prime minister designed to halt an unprecedented wave of protest against Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan. Pro-government newspapers signalled a softening of Ankara's line in the absence of Erdogan, who flew off on a state visit to north Africa on Mo

ISTANBUL — Fatma Betul Ozer is having flashbacks from a decade ago, when she was barred from attending university in Turkey because of her headscarf.

Ongoing protests criticizing Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan have created a climate where some women who wear hijab say they feel unsafe because Erdogan's opponents immediately associate them with him and his AK Party, which has Islamic origins. In addition, critics of the protests accuse certain political groups of exploiting the situation to stoke tensions in the country. At the same time, Erdogan supporters say their party is evaluating its management of the clashes, but dismiss protesters' claims that they have limited personal freedoms.

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