Turkey arrests 24 May Day protesters on 'terror' charges

Turkish authorities today formally arrested and charged with "terrorism" two dozen people detained during May Day demonstrations in Istanbul, state media said.
According to official figures, police on May Day detained 366 people in various parts of the city following clashes.
An Istanbul court placed 24 detainees under arrest while releasing the rest pending trial, state-run Anatolia news agency reported.
Those arrested have been charged with a number of offences including "belonging to a terrorist group," destroying public property," and "possession of explosives," Anatolia said.
The May Day demonstration was the first major gathering after parliament passed a controversial security bill this year giving the police greater powers to crack down on protests.

On May 1, police used tear gas and water cannon to disperse hundreds of stone-throwing protesters as they attempted to defy a ban on demonstrations on Istanbul's Taksim Square protest hub, around which most of the detentions took place.
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's administration -- shaken by weeks of deadly anti-government protests in May-June 2013 centred on Taksim Square -- is hugely nervous about public demonstrations ahead of June 7 legislative elections.