ISTANBUL: After spending three nights in detention, Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu is set to face prosecutors on Saturday. This comes on the heels of massive demonstrations across Turkey, where hundreds of thousands took to the streets in a bold act of defiance.
This marks the third consecutive night of protests against Imamoglu’s arrest. As President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s strongest political opponent, the mayor’s detainment on Wednesday triggered the largest demonstrations the country has seen in over a decade.
Following violent encounters between protesters and riot police in Istanbul, Ankara, and the western city of Izmir, authorities reported the arrest of 97 individuals, according to Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya. Reports indicated that police conducted raids on numerous homes overnight, but the exact number of additional detentions remains unconfirmed.
Imamoglu, 53, was taken into custody just days before the Republican People’s Party (CHP) was set to name him as their candidate for the 2028 presidential elections. According to sources within his party, he was being questioned by police regarding a "terror" investigation on Saturday morning.
He is expected to appear before prosecutors at the Caglayan courthouse at 6 PM GMT to address allegations related to both corruption and terrorism. Imamoglu, who was re-elected last year by a significant margin, faces accusations alongside six others of allegedly assisting the banned Kurdish group PKK, classified as a terrorist organization by the government.
Additionally, he is being investigated for charges that include bribery, extortion, corruption, aggravated fraud, and unlawfully acquiring personal data for financial gain, alongside a total of 99 other suspects.
Six-Hour Interrogation
On Friday, Imamoglu was questioned by the police for six hours concerning the corruption allegations. His lawyer, Mehmet Pehlivan, stated, “Mr. Imamoglu denies all the charges against him.” He described the detention as a targeted effort to damage Imamoglu’s reputation, labeling both investigations as “based on false claims” and violations of the right to a fair trial.
Nationwide demonstrations are again planned for Saturday night. In a message shared via his lawyers on X, Imamoglu expressed pride in the demonstrators, who rallied in over 50 of Turkey’s 81 provinces, asserting that they were “defending our republic, democracy, and the future of a just Turkey, as well as the will of our nation.”
Ozgur Ozel, the leader of the main opposition CHP, addressed crowds outside Istanbul’s City Hall on Friday night, claiming that around 300,000 participants defied a protest ban and Erdogan’s stern warning against “street terror.” The crowd responded with cheers, waving flags, and chanting slogans like, “Don’t be silent, or you’ll be next.”
Imamoglu’s situation has adversely affected the Turkish lira and financial markets, with the BIST 100 index plummeting nearly eight percent on Friday.
