Turkish President Recep Tayyip Eerdogan said he will move forward with the construction of a controversial "historical monument" in Istanbul's Gezi Park area, speaking in a televised address broadcast by CNN Turk on Saturday, according to dpa. In 2013, a controversial plan to construct an Ottoman-era military barracks housing a shopping mall in Gezi Park sparked nationwide protests against the Turkish government when Erdogan was prime minister. Several people were killed in the unrest. The Gezi Park demonstrations snowballed into a movement against Erdogan and his Justice and Development Party (AKP), who were accused of gradually instituting authoritarian rule in the fiercely secular country.
