Thousands of demonstrators took to the streets of Istanbul, Turkey on Saturday protesting against the rising cost of living and soaring inflation.

Iran Press/Asia: Surrounded by a heavy police presence, the protesters held banners with references to the 'yellow vest' movement in France, which began as a demonstration against fuel price hikes but snowballed into anti-government protests, RTE reported.

The protest, organised by the KESK, a confederation of public service workers unions, drew people from all over Turkey including the northwestern provinces of Edirne, Bursa and Yalova.

They shouted 'work, bread, freedom' and also carried banners saying "the crisis is theirs, the street is ours" and 'Haziran' which means June in Turkish.

June refers to the mass 2013 demonstrations against President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's rule sparked by a planned redevelopment of Gezi Park in Istanbul.

The protest comes almost a week after thousands of people demonstrated in another KESK rally against the rising cost of living in the southeastern city of Diyarbakir.

The Turkish economy has come under heavy strain since a currency crisis in August and inflation reached 25.24% in October, a 15-year-high.

Although inflation dropped to 21.62% in November, the price of everyday goods remains high.

Since the start of this year, the lira has lost nearly 22.5% in value against the US dollar. 103 / 211

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