May Day

Turkey has marked International Workers' Day, also known as May Day, under the full nationwide lockdown to stem the spread of the coronavirus.

Due to the full lockdown implemented across Turkey, rallies were not held, but May Day was celebrated "symbolically" in various cities.

Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras marked May Day with a message saying that his leftist government was working hard to ease the impact of austerity policies introduced under Greece's bailout programs.

Commuters will be left with few options on May Day as workers on the capital's urban electric railway (ISAP), city buses and trolley buses are to stage a 24-hour strike.

PARIS (Reuters) - French President Emmanuel Macron ordered a shake-up of his office after acknowledging failings in the way the presidency handled a scandal over his top bodyguard who was filmed beating a protester on May Day, a source close to the Elysee said.

Thousands of people gathered across Turkey, including Istanbul and the capital Ankara on May 1 to mark International Workers' Day, also known as May Day.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan celebrated May Day in a message issued on April 30, one day ahead of International Workers' Day.

A group of civil society organizations, consisting of 34 people, commemorated the 40th anniversary of a 1977 massacre that left 37 people dead and many others wounded during May Day celebrations, on a street opening onto Istanbul's landmark Taksim Square. 

May Day celebrations in Istanbul will be held in the city's Bakırköy district this year after authorities again refused to heed workers' demands to use Taksim Square, the Confederation of Progressive Trade Unions (DİSK) said on April 26.

After a five-day break for the Easter and May Day holidays, the Athens Exchange is set to reopen its doors for trading on Wednesday morning, with the benchmark starting the session from 583.65 points, where it closed last Thursday.

Here is a brief list of what happened as May Day began in Turkey: