Tens of thousands of protesters rallied in Istanbul and other cities across Turkey for a fifth night on March 23, after the main political rival to the country’s strongman President Recep Tayyip Erdogan was formally arrested and charged with corruption. Police officers were seen using tear gas, rubber bullets, and water cannons against the protestors, who were waving Turkish flags and pro-opposition banners. There were also reports of clashes between police and demonstrators.
Ekrem Imamoglu, the mayor of Istanbul, was due to be selected in a vote on March 23 as the opposition Republican People's Party's (CHP) candidate for Turkey’s next presidential election, which is currently scheduled for 2028. But Imamoglu, 54, and dozens of others, including politicians, journalists, and entrepreneurs were detained as a part of a corruption investigation on March 19. The popular mayor was formally arrested on March 23 and charged with "establishing and managing a criminal organization, taking bribes, extortion,” and other crimes.
The mayor -- who is a member of the CHP, the main opposition against Erdogan's ruling alliance -- has denied the allegations against him, describing them as “unimaginable accusations and slanders.” "I will never bow," Imamoglu wrote on X before his arrest. Imamoglu’s detention is widely seen as a politically motivated act to remove him from the presidential race.
But the government insists the country's courts are independent entities. Imamoglu's wif.
