About 300 anti-Israel protesters gathered Thursday in central Istanbul as Turkish football side Besiktas took on Maccabi Tel Aviv in a Europa League match

About 300 anti-Israel protesters gathered Thursday in central Istanbul as Turkish football side Besiktas took on Maccabi Tel Aviv in a Europa League match.

Demonstrators chanted: "Murderer Israel, get out of Turkey" and "Destruction of Israel, freedom for Palestine" while holding aloft Palestinian flags on Taksim square. "Imperialism will be defeated, the Islamic revolt will win the day," read a banner at the protest.

Tight security measures were in place ahead of the match in the Turkish city amid cooling relations with Israel over the killing by Israeli forces of nine Turkish activists on board a ship headed for Gaza on May 31 last year.

"We'll never forget the Mavi Marmara," one banner read, referring to the Gaza-bound ship."We don't want any Zionist murderers in our country, whether they are a diplomat, an artist or a sportsperson," one protester told the crowd. "We are calling for the breaking of all ties between Turkey and the Zionist state."

Inside the stadium there were few signs of protest, apart from a handful of Besiktas supporters chanting: "Immoral Israel".