Turkey, police, guard, after, Imamoglu, arrest. Police officers stand under a banner of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his ruling AKP around the provincial police headquarters where Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu is being held after his arrest in Istanbul on March 19. KEMAL ASLAN/AFP/Getty Images
The arrest of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, a popular rival of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, has sent shock waves throughout the powerful NATO member state and a city of 16 million people that straddles the European and Asian continents.
Imamoglu, a member of the opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) that outperformed Erdogan's ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) nationwide last year, was arrested Wednesday on charges of aiding and abetting terrorism, specifically the separatist Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), as well as links to organized crime. The detention came just days before Imamoglu was expected to be chosen as CHP's next presidential candidate on Sunday.
CHP leadership has alleged that Imamoglu's arrest, along with the simultaneous detention of more than 100 others, constituted a politically motivated "coup," and the move has prompted criticism from within Turkey and abroad, including France and Germany.
Turkish Justice Minister Yilmaz Tunc argued, however, that the "rule of law" had been upheld throughout the judicial process and urged the media to "remain calm as we await the outcome of the investigation" in press comments shared with Newsweek.
"It is inappropriate to assess the initiated investigations without being fully informed about the case file, claims, and evidence," Tunc said. "It is utterly dangerous and wrong to mischaracterise the investigations conducted by the independent and impartial judiciary or describe them using expressions such as coup d'état."
"Moreover," he added, "engaging in disinformation regarding the investigations by calling for street protests and making misleading statements to the public are entirely unacceptable."
Newsweek has reached out to the CHP for comment.
Why It Matters
While Erdogan bested then-CHP leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu in the 2023 presidential election, the top opposition party, now led by Ozgur Ozel, emerged from last year's local elections with the greatest challenge yet to the two-decade leadership of Erdogan and his AKP. CHP's wide-margin defense of Istanbul, Erdogan's home city where Imamoglu first assumed leadership in 2019, cast Imamoglu into the spotlight of a potential 2028 run.
But Imamoglu's rise has been met with legal challenges, with Turkish authorities annulling his 2019 election victory, only for a second race to reelect him, and then seeking to ban him from politics after he was found guilty in 2022 of insulting electoral officials for referring to the Turkish Supreme Election Council as "fools" in 2019. The ban has yet to go into effect as it is pending appeal, but Imamoglu was again indicted last month, this time on charges of attempting to influence a trial linked to probes against the CHP.
A decision Tuesday by Istanbul University to annul his diploma over a technicality further weakened his presidential prospects given the requirement for candidates to have valid graduate credentials.
Imamoglu's sudden arrest in a police raid on his Istanbul residence the following day has raised additional uncertainties about his political future. Claims that he attempted to form an alliance with a Kurdish umbrella organization tied to the PKK, which has waged a decades-long insurgency in Turkey, carry serious weight under Turkish law.
The group has been linked by Turkish officials to the deaths of thousands of people since 1984, most recently an attack in October at the Turkish Aerospace Industries headquarters outside of the capital Ankara, in which five people were reportedly killed.
The Turkish government signed a historic ceasefire agreement with the PKK earlier this month, but clashes have persisted across the border with Syria between Turkish forces, alongside allied militias, and Kurdish factions, including the U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces. The U.S. also considers the PKK to be a terrorist organization.
U.S. President Donald Trump has praised Erdogan and in December said Turkey "will hold the key to Syria" in the wake of the downfall of longtime President Bashar al-Assad. Under Erdogan, Turkey has also played a leading role in diplomacy related to the war between Russia and Ukraine and other conflicts ranging from North Africa to the Southern Caucasus.
What To Know
CHP is the oldest political party in Turkey. It was founded by Mustafa Turkel Ataturk, who went on to establish the modern Republic of Turkey from the post-World War I ashes of the Ottoman Empire.
Turkey was led by the CHP for nearly three decades until losing decisively to the Democrat Party in 1950. The CHP has never been managed to lead its own government since, though it has emerged as the leading opposition faction to Erdogan, who first led the country as prime minister in 2003 and later as president since 2014.
Considered Turkey's most influential leader since Ataturk, Erdogan has consolidated his executive power and elevated Turkey's status to that of a rising middle power in the Middle East and beyond, balancing diplomatic ties between East and West. Economically, however, he has struggled to rein in soaring inflation and depreciating currency value.
Opposition parties in Turkey have also long accused Erdogan's administration of suppressing dissent on the pretext of cracking down on subversive activities. Turkish authorities have fired and arrested tens of thousands of people in the wake of a 2016 coup attempt by a Turkish military faction allegedly linked to the movement of dissident religious leader Fethullah Gulen. Gulen died in October in Pennsylvania, where he had lived in exile since 1999.
More recently, amid calls for an early national election, Turkish authorities have taken actions against a number of opposition leaders, including the arrest of far-right Victory Party leader Umit Ozdag in January over charges of inciting hatred and organizing anti-immigrant riots. Ozdag has argued that the accusations are politically motivated.
Similarly, Imamoglu has rejected the integrity of the investigation that led to his own arrest on Tuesday.
"The will of the people cannot be silenced through intimidation or unlawful acts," Imamoglu said in a statement on social media Wednesday. "I stand resolute, entrusting myself not only to the 16 million residents of Istanbul but to the 86 million citizens of Türkiye and all who uphold democracy and justice worldwide. I stand firm in my fight for the fundamental rights and freedoms."
Tunc, for his part, condemned any attempts to link the probe directly to Erdogan, arguing that the process was being carried out by an "impartial and independent judiciary."
"Attempting to associate judicial investigations and cases with our President is, to say the least, an act of audacity and irresponsibility," Tunc said. "In our country, the separation of powers-legislative, executive, and judicial-is a fundamental principle. The judiciary does not take orders from anyone."
"Attacking the judiciary, threatening judicial officials, or insulting them is entirely unacceptable in a democratic state of law," he added. "Instead of engaging in actions and behaviours that seek to interfere with the investigations conducted for the sake of justice, it is essential to act with common sense."
Tunc said that Imamoglu is currently being investigated by the Terror Crimes Investigation Bureau on suspicions of "aiding a terrorist organisation in collaboration" and by the Office of Organized Crime Investigation Bureau on suspicions of having "committed offences within the scope of a criminal organisation established for financial gain, including bribery, embezzlement, bid rigging, aggravated fraud, and unlawful acquisition of personal data."
A protester holds a picture of detained Istanbul Mayor Ekram Imamoglu between the national flag of Turkey and an image of the country's modern founder, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, at a protest outside City Hall in Istanbul, March 19. Emrah Gurel/AP
What People Are Saying
CHP leader Ozgur Ozel in a social media statement on Wednesday: "Making decisions on behalf of the people, using force to replace the will of the people or to obstruct it is a coup. There is currently a force in place to prevent the nation from determining the next president. We are faced with a coup attempt against our next president..."
"Our nation loves its state, but if someone tries to turn the state against the nation, the nation will not allow it. The real power is the nation and in the end the nation wins... It will be the same again. We will not give in. In the end, the people's will prevail and Türkiye will win."
Turkish Justice Minister Yilzim Tunic in comments shared with the media on Wednesday: "At the investigation stage, the claims, defence submissions, and evidence will be examined, and once the confidentiality of the proceedings is lifted, the material facts will be revealed transparently to the public.
"For this reason, forming premature judgments-whether in favour of or against-without having any knowledge of the investigation's details is inappropriate. It must be remembered that in a state of law, the presumption of innocence and the right to avoid undue stigmatisation are fundamental principles."
"Trust in the Turkish judiciary is crucial. The judicial system ensures full access to legal remedies. For justice to be served in its fullest and most complete form, it is our collective responsibility to follow the process calmly and to respect the judicial decisions."
What Happens Next
CHP leadership has announced its intention to hold its presidential primary on Sunday as planned despite the arrest of its likely front-runner.
Even if Imamoglu is selected as the party's candidate, however, he faces a difficult path to the ballot in light of his legal troubles and looming ban from public office. At the same time, Erdogan may face growing unrest by CHP supporters who cast the Turkish leader as increasingly authoritarian.
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This story was originally published March 19, 2025 at 3:42 PM.