Dozens of couples have locked lips at a subway stop in Turkey's capital, Ankara, to protest subway authorities' admonishment of a couple that kissed in public.

Turkish media say that, earlier in the week, Ankara subway officials made an announcement asking passengers "to act in accordance with moral rules" after security cameras spotted the couple kissing.

Some 100 people in the station kissed for several minutes in protest Saturday. Demonstrators carried signs reading "Free Kisses" and chanted slogans.

A pro-Islamist group of some 20 people staged a counter-protest. Police set up barricades between the groups.