ISTANBUL
A second man, as yet unidentified, died Friday after sustaining injuries during clashes Thursday night between police and demonstrators in the Okmeydani district of Istanbul, Governor Huseyin Avni Mutlu, said.
The man was allegedly wounded in the back by shrapnel from a pipe bomb which the police said was hurled by protesters. Eight police officers were also wounded in the blast.
This follows the death of Ugur Kurt, 30, who was seriously wounded after hit by a stray bullet in the head while attending a funeral procession in an Alevi prayer house close to the scene of an earlier demonstration in the Okmeydani district. The demonstrators had gathered to protest last week's deadly coal mine disaster in western Turkey, as well as the death of an Istanbul teenager, Berkin Elvan, who was fatally injured during 2013's Gezi Park protests in Istanbul.
Kurt died in hospital Thursday night. Police launched a criminal investigation into his death, governor Mutlu said.
The police are still trying to determine the identity of the second man to die in the clashes, the governor said speaking to reporters Friday.
Improvised explosive devices were found at the scene of last night's clashes, Istanbul police said.
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