Turkish police arrest Istanbul mayor, a key Erdogan rival, as government crackdown escalates

ISTANBUL (AP) — Turkish police on Wednesday arrested Istanbul's mayor — a popular opposition leader and key rival of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan — and several other prominent figures as part of investigations into alleged corruption and terror links. It was a dramatic escalation in an ongoing crackdown on the opposition and dissenting voices in Turkey.

The state-run Anadolu Agency said prosecutors issued warrants for the mayor, Ekrem Imamoglu, and some 100 other people. Among those detained was Imamoglu's close aide, Murat Ongun and two district mayors.

Authorities also closed several roads around Istanbul and banned demonstrations in the city for four days in an apparent effort to prevent protests following the arrest.

Critics say the crackdown follows significant losses by Erdogan's ruling party in local elections last year amid growing calls for early national elections. Government officials insist that the courts operate independently and reject claims that legal actions against opposition figures are politically motivated.

“We are facing great tyranny, but I want you to know that I will not be discouraged,” Imamoglu said earlier in the day in a video post on social media.

Germany criticized the arrests, with Foreign Ministry spokesperson Sebastian Fischer describing them as “a serious setback for democracy.”

People gathered later Wednesday near Istanbul’s police headquarters, carrying posters of the mayor and banners with his photo around their shoulders. Others chanted slogans and raised their fists in the air as riot police cordoned off the facility.

Justice Minister Yilmaz Tunc told reporters the arrests had nothing to do with the government. “Linking investigations and cases initiated by the judiciary to our President is, at best, presumptuous and inappropriate,” he said.

The backdrop

Erdogan, a populist with increasingly authoritarian tendencies, has led Turkey as prime minister or president for more than 20 years. His current term runs until 2028 but he has indicated he'd like to serve longer — something he could achieve with a constitutional change or if early elections are called.

The Istanbul Stock Exchange’s main index dropped by 7% over the news, triggering a temporary halt in trading to prevent panic selling and stabilize the market. Trading later resumed but was again halted in the afternoon. The Turkish lira lost some 7% of its value against the dollar.

Anadolu, the news agency, said that Ekrem Imamoglu and several others are suspected of a multitude of financial irregularities.

Imamoglu is also suspected of aiding the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party, or PKK, by allegedly forming an alliance with a Kurdish umbrella organization for the Istanbul municipal elections, the agency said. The PKK, behind a decadeslong insurgency in Turkey, is designated a terrorist organization by Ankara, Washington and other allies.

Imamoglu's wife, Dilek, told the private Now television that police arrived at their residence around dawn and that the mayor was taken around 7:30 a.m.

Silencing the opposition

A day earlier, Istanbul University invalidated Imamoglu's diploma, effectively disqualifying him from the next presidential race — a university degree is a requisite for running in elections under Turkish law.

The mayor’s party — the main opposition Republican People’s Party, or CHP — was to hold a primary on Sunday where he was expected to be chosen for its candidate in future presidential elections.

With all the arrests Wednesday, that vote was in doubt but party chairman Ozgur Ozel said it would go ahead as planned.

In a social media post in English, Imamoglu said he stands “resolute, entrusting myself not only to the 16 million residents of Istanbul but to the 86 million citizens" of Turkey.

Hundreds also gathered outside CHP’s headquarters in Ankara, Turkey's capital, as the party's lawmakers protested inside the parliament, disrupting proceedings before marching out.

Turkey’s pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Equality and Democracy Party condemned the detentions and called for the immediate release of all taken into custody.

Imamoglu's arrest was a "disgrace that will not be forgotten for centuries. This operation, which shatters faith in justice, is an attempt to redesign politics through the judiciary,” Tulay Hatimogullari, the party’s co-chairwoman, wrote on X.

Amnesty International said Imamoglu’s detention marked an escalation in Turkey’s crackdown on the opposition.

“While the weaponization of vague anti-terrorism allegations to detain and prosecute opponents is not new, these latest detentions and associated restrictions represent an alarming intensification of the targeting of real or perceived critics," said Dinushika Dissanayake, Amnesty’s deputy director for Europe.

Ongun, the mayor's aide, appealed for support on X even as he himself was being arrested, though at the time he apparently didn't know that Imamoglu was also being taken into custody.

“I entrust Ekrem Imamoglu to the Turkish nation. Protect, watch over and support him. They cannot be defeat the nation," Ongun said.

Separately, police also detained a prominent investigative journalist, Ismail Saymaz, for questioning, the opposition-aligned Halk TV reported.

Meanwhile, internet-access advocacy group netblocks.org reported Wednesday that access has been restricted in Turkey to popular social media platforms.

Legal obstacles

In nullifying Imamoglu’s diploma, the university cited alleged irregularities in his 1990 transfer from a private university in northern Cyprus to its business faculty, a decision Imamoglu said he would challenge.

Later Wednesday, students at the university held a protest to denounce Imamoglu's arrest. No violence was immediately reported.

Imamoglu faces multiple lawsuits, including allegations of trying to influence a judicial expert investigating opposition-led municipalities. The cases could result in prison sentences and a political ban.

He is also appealing a 2022 conviction of insulting members of Turkey’s Supreme Electoral Council, a case that could result in a political ban.

Imamoglu was elected mayor of Turkey’s largest city in March 2019, a historic blow to Erdogan and the president’s Justice and Development Party, which had controlled Istanbul for a quarter-century. The party pushed to void the municipal election results in the city of 16 million, alleging irregularities.

The challenge resulted in a repeat of the election a few months later, which Imamoglu also won. The mayor retained his seat following local elections last year, during which his party made significant gains against Erdogan’s governing party.

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Fraser reported from Ankara, Turkey. Associated Press writers Lorian Belanger in Bangkok and Cinar Kiper in Bodrum, Turkey, contributed to this report.