LIVE: Activists rally in Istanbul to mark Intl Day for Elimination of Violence Against Women

Women’s rights activists are gathering for a protest in Taksim Square, Istanbul on Thursday, November 25, to denounce domestic violence and femicide on the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women. Feminist organisations, students’ unions and women’s organisations called for the demonstration following a rise in cases of violent crime against women and minors over the last two years. Violence against women has increased in the country after President Erdogan decided to withdraw from Istanbul Convention, an international treaty to prevent and prosecute violence against women and domestic abuse, which was signed in 2011 with Turkey as the first signatory country.​