The people flocked to Avcılar and Küçükçekmece responding to the call of "Either the Canal or Istanbul Coordination" against the Kanal Istanbul Project imposed by the AKP.

Hundreds  gathered at the entrance of the Paşaeli Picnic Area, the meeting point in Avcılar, and were joined by HDP and CHP members, trade unions and civil society organizations.

A banner saying "Budget for the earthquake not the Canal" was opened by the crowd who chantes slogans such as "Budget for the laborer not for the canal" and "Budget for education not for the Canal".

Turgay Halis Çelik, from Avcılar City Council and member of "Either the Canal or Istanbul Coordination",  warned against the attempt of the AKP to polarize the society through the Kanal Istanbul Project, which was put back on the agenda of the country 9 years after first being presented.

Stating that the Kanal Istanbul project is not the product of a need, Çelik underlined that this project is a "real estate, rent and ecological destruction project. This project - he added - is not the priority of the citizens living in Istanbul. Our priority is how to face the risk of earthquakes."