Police clash with women's day marchers in Turkey (VIDEO)

Using rubber bullets and tear gas, Turkish police have dispersed a crowd of several thousand marchers who gathered outside Istanbul's Taksim Square on International Women's Day, local media reported, with videos from the scene.

The "Feminist Night March" in Istanbul was one of the many demonstrations held on Friday across Turkey, demanding equality and an end to the "historic oppression" of women.

Turkish authorities have been cracking down on mass gatherings since the 2016 attempted coup, although the state of emergency was lifted in July 2018.

Demonstrators responded to the crackdown by chanting anti-police slogans, and telling riot officers to find another profession, local media reported.

Police and marchers clash at International Women's Day protest in Istanbul, Turkey ©  Reuters/Kemal Aslan

One of the chants was "police, open the way, the streets belong to us!"

Barred from Taksim Square, the demonstrators marched on Istiklal Avenue, the main thoroughfare of Istanbul's Beyogly District.

Earlier in the day, female students from Istanbul University held a march as well.

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