Riot police use a water cannon to disperse protesters during a rally against a bill which would, among other things, allow Turkey's telecommunications authority to directly block access to websites or remove content deemed to be violating privacy without a court decision, in Istanbul, Turkey, Saturday, Jan. 18, 2014. (AP / Emrah Gurel)

Police broke up groups of protesters who gathered at the city's main hub, Taksim, and along a main street to denounce the draft bill that would allow Turkey's telecommunications authority to block websites or remove content accused of privacy violations without a court decision, and force service providers to keep Internet users' data for two years.

Critics say that would expand the government's already tight grip on the Internet. The government rejects accusations of censorship, saying the move aims to protect privacy.

The measure comes as Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's government is fighting a corruption probe targeting people close to him — the worst crisis it has faced during its 11 years in power. Erdogan says the probe is a conspiracy orchestrated by followers of an Islamic movement led by U.S.-based cleric Fethullah Gulen to discredit the government ahead of local elections in March.

The new Internet controls come as alleged police documents and photographs linked to the corruption probe have been leaked through the Internet.