Turkish authorities detain dozens more over university protests

600 people detained in a month amid protests against president's appointment of rector at Bogazici University

Turkish police officers detain protesters during a rally in Istanbul. Bogazici University students are protesting against the appointment of a ruling party loyalist as rector. AFP

Turkish police detained 65 people on Thursday over protests that started a month ago at a top university, continuing a crackdown on the protesters despite growing international criticism.

Students and teachers at Istanbul's Bogazici University say President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's choice of university rector was undemocratic.

The Istanbul governor's office said the protesters had defied a ban on public demonstrations, gatherings and marches imposed during the Covid-19 pandemic. It said that the people detained on Thursday in Istanbul's Kadikoy district were carrying out illegal acts.

Authorities said about 600 people had been detained since January 4 after protests spread in Istanbul and Ankara. Most have been released, despite officials saying that the protesters are terrorists.

Two people who were detained at an Istanbul protest on Tuesday were arrested overnight, a court spokeswoman said.

Government response to the protests and condemnation of an art display including a picture blending Islamic and LGBT images alarmed the US and UN, both of which have criticised what they called homophobic rhetoric. Ankara dismissed the criticism as interference in its domestic affairs.

The EU Commission said the detention of students "exercising their legitimate right to freedom of assembly" was deeply worrying, and the Covid pandemic should not be used as a reason to silence critical voices.

"Hate speech displayed by high-level officials against LGBTI students during these events and the closing of an LGBTI association is unacceptable," the commission said.

Mr Erdogan said on Wednesday that his government would not allow the protests to swell into a repeat of widespread demonstrations in 2013, calling protesters terrorists. His interior minister described them as "LGBT deviants".