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Turkish police detain Istanbul mayor in what opposition calls 'coup'

Ekrem Imamoglu is the mayor of Istanbul (AP)

Ekrem Imamoglu is the mayor of Istanbul (AP)

Ece Toksabay and Ezgi Erkoyun

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Turkey detained Istanbul mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, the main rival of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, on charges of corruption and aiding a terrorist group in what the main opposition party on Wednesday called "a coup against our next president".

The move against the two-term mayor caps a months-long legal crackdown on opposition figures across the country which has been criticised as a politicised attempt to hurt their electoral prospects.

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