COP31: Thousands in Antalya protest environmental damage: 'We no longer believe in those who lead us'

Protesters hold up effigies of birds on the sidelines of COP31 in Antalya, Turkey, on November 14, 2026. OZAN KOSE/AFP This is not Belém, with its scorching sun and tens of thousands of demonstrators gathered on the sidelines of COP30 in Brazil at the same time last year. But the traditional People's Climate March, held on Saturday, November 14, in downtown Antalya, Turkey, on the sidelines of the 31 st United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP31), stood out for its scale in a country where the space for protest, both environmental and political, is narrow.

Nearly 10,000 people marched peacefully, under a light rain and in a cheerful atmosphere, behind a large banner in Turkish: "Against COP31, we defend life!" Hundreds of signs, flags and slogans punctuated the route of a demonstration that ended with music in a large square overlooking the sea, about an hour from the Antalya Exhibition Center where the United Nations climate conference is taking place. Major NGOs like Greenpeace and 350.org were there, along with the Fridays for Future movement and the Climate Action Network (CAN).

There were also many Palestinian, feminist, antiwar and antinuclear groups. The march also brought together a handful of far-left activists supporting a Turkish-Greek peace initiative. At the rear of the march were trade unions, Turkish opposition parties such as the Left Party, environmentalists and DEM, a left-wing pro-Kurdish party, whose co-chair, lawmaker Tülay Hatimogullari, marched among her supporters. You have 79.08% of this article left to read.

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