Thousands of Kurds clashed with police Sunday in Istanbul and the southern city of Diyarbakir, leaving nine people injured as security forces tried to stop Kurdish New Year festivities.

Thousands of Kurds clashed with police Sunday in Istanbul and the southern city of Diyarbakir, leaving nine people injured as security forces tried to stop Kurdish New Year festivities.

Police fired tear gas and water cannon to prevent more than 40,000 Kurds from gathering at the main square in Diyarbakir, capital of the Kurdish-majority south, AFP reported, indicating that “the unrest spread to nearby areas and several cars were torched.”

Protesters also threw firebombs, the Anatolia news agency reported, adding that a police officer suffered a broken arm and an elderly person was hit in the head with stones.

Anatolia said several people were arrested, while security sources said two men were arrested after an assault rifle was found in their car.

Seven people were injured including one or two police officers, Anatolia quoted the city's governor Huseyin Avni Mutlu as saying, adding that police made 106 arrests.

Turkish authorities had rejected a Kurdish demand to mark Navroz on Sunday, the weekly day of rest in Turkey, designating Wednesday as the only day authorized for celebrations.