Istanbul Airport protests
Protests at Istanbul Airport started on September 14, 2018, led by construction workers who said working conditions were poor. The project employs about 40,000 workers and was aiming to open on October 29. The union İYİ-SEN announced the action on Twitter, saying workers were protesting because the site’s services were not enough.
The workers gathered at the construction site early in the morning, blocked exits, and complained about bad food, shelter, and transportation, and that deaths and injuries were not being made public. They prepared a 15-point list of demands and handed it to the management.
Police and gendarmerie arrived, entrances to the area were blocked by the Istanbul governor, and journalists, lawyers, and some officials were kept out of the protest zone. The government insisted the project would still open on October 29, calling it a proud national project, while the union said conditions remained unacceptable.
Around September 15, hundreds of workers and union representatives were detained during a raid, and some were later arrested for shouting slogans. By September 27, the number of detained/arrested workers had risen to 27. Support came from labor and human rights groups and several political parties, who called on the government to meet the workers’ demands. Solidarity actions were organized in other cities, and the protests received wide media coverage.
This page was last edited on 2 February 2026, at 16:14 (CET).