Turkish prosecutors have dropped criminal charges against a protester who became known globally as the "woman in red" during last year's mass street demonstrations against the government.
The decision, reported in the Turkish media today, comes after prosecutors said they were demanding up to three years in prison for a policeman who tear-gassed the woman, Ceyda Sungur, during a rally in Istanbul.
Pictures of the academic being pepper-sprayed went viral, making her an unwitting symbol of the protest movement against Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Istanbul public prosecutor Huseyin Nazmi Okumus yesterday decided to drop charges of "provoking people to disobey laws" against Sungur and four other demonstrators, the Hurriyet Daily News reported on its website.
The police officer has been charged with violating police regulations over the incident, in which he sprayed tear gas at Sungur's face from less than one metre (three feet) away.
She was wearing an elegant red dress at the time.
Clashes between police and protesters during the June unrest left at least six people dead and 8,000 people injured.
