Protests erupt across Turkey after opposition leader İmamoğlu’s arrest

Protests have broken out in multiple Turkish cities following the arrest of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s main opposition leader, Ekrem İmamoğlu.

Thousands of demonstrators in Istanbul, where İmamoğlu serves as mayor, took to the streets on Wednesday, gathering outside police headquarters and the Republican People’s Party (CHP) headquarters, according to Euronews. Clashes with police were reported, with tear gas deployed to disperse crowds.

Government officials had already imposed a four-day ban on protests following İmamoğlu’s arrest, prohibiting public gatherings. Other measures, including an alleged throttling of internet access, have reportedly limited social media access for users across the country.

Demonstrations have also spread to other major Turkish cities, including Ankara, Izmir, Adana, and Trabzon.

In the early hours of Tuesday, Turkish police arrested İmamoğlu in a dawn raid at his home, just days before he was expected to be named the CHP’s presidential candidate in a primary scheduled for Sunday.

Prosecutors have accused İmamoğlu of corruption, extortion, money laundering, and tender irregularities, as well as aiding the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK)—a designated terrorist organization—by allegedly collaborating with a Kurdish political coalition during the 2024 municipal elections. The Istanbul prosecutor’s office has labeled him the “leader of a criminal organization,” according to Anadolu.

Besides İmamoğlu, more than 100 individuals were also detained in a coordinated nationwide crackdown, including opposition politicians, journalists, businesspeople, and municipal officials, according to The New York Times.

Critics, including the CHP, have denounced the arrest as a politically motivated “coup” aimed at eliminating Erdoğan’s strongest rival, who has defeated the ruling AK Party in three Istanbul elections.