Huge crowds gathered in Istanbul’s Taksim Square again last night but demonstrators were preparing for an expected police crackdown on their protests today.

Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the Prime Minister, yesterday warned that his patience with the anti-government movement, which is entering its 11th day, was wearing thin. “We remained patient, we are still patient but there’s a limit to our patience,” he told thousands of cheering supporters as he landed at Ankara’s airport, hours after rallying loyalists in two other Turkish cities.

The Mayor of Istanbul, its police chief and chief prosecutor have announced that there will be no attempt to clear the square “before Monday”.

Mr Erdogan has sought to turn the crisis into a campaign springboard for local elections in seven months’ time,