Recently, large protests have been held in Turkey, Israel, and Serbia. Though all of the protests have different causes, each is seen by many as a political battle for the future of the country.
Turkey
People across Turkey* have been protesting for the last week after the arrest of Istanbul’s mayor, Ekrem Imamoglu. Many people believe the arrest is an effort to keep Mr. Imamoglu out of the country’s 2028 election for president.
Mr. Imamoglu is a member of Turkey’s opposition party CHP (Republican People’s Party). He’s a popular politician who’s been Istanbul’s mayor since 2019.
Protests in Ankara over Imamoglu detention. Photo shows a nighttime rally in the city of Ankara. Many people in the crowd are waving vertical red flags with the letters HKP.
People across Turkey have been protesting for the last week after the arrest of Istanbul’s mayor, Ekrem Imamoglu. Many people believe the arrest is an effort to keep Mr. Imamoglu out of the country’s 2028 election for president. Above, protests in the capital, Ankara, on March 20.
(Source: Mocmuk [CC0], via Wikimedia Commons.)
Last Wednesday – the day he was chosen as CHP’s candidate for the next presidential election – Mr. Imamoglu was arrested.
Mr. Imamoglu was charged with several crimes, including corruption. He denies the charges. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who’s led Turkey since 2003, claims the charges aren’t political.
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Hundreds of thousands of people have taken to the streets in Turkey’s largest cities to support Mr. Imamoglu. The government has banned protests, but that hasn’t stopped the crowds. Above, police using tear gas and water cannons on protesters on Sunday.
But many people aren’t convinced. Over the last six days, hundreds of thousands of people have taken to the streets in Turkey’s largest cities to support Mr. Imamoglu.
The government has banned protests, but that hasn’t stopped the crowds.
Israel
In recent days, tens of thousands of people have protested in Israel. They’re upset by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s efforts to fire people investigating him. Many people are also protesting because Israel broke the ceasefire with Hamas and is attacking Gaza again.
Israel-Hamas War
The fighting between Israel and Hamas began after Hamas brutally attacked Israel on October 7, 2022, killing about 1,200 people and taking roughly 250 hostages. Israel sent soldiers into Gaza and continued to pound the area with bombs. Close to 70% of Gaza’s buildings have been destroyed, and over 50,000 people in Gaza have been killed, many of them civilians.
A ceasefire was reached on January 19, 2025. But Israel broke the ceasefire and attacked Gaza again on March 18, 2025.
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In recent days, tens of thousands of people have protested in Israel. They’re upset by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s efforts to fire people investigating him. Many people are also protesting because Israel broke the ceasefire with Hamas. Above, people raise their phones during an anti-government rally in Tel Aviv on Saturday.
Before the attack, Mr. Netanyahu faced huge protests over his efforts to weaken Israel’s court system. Protesters saw Mr. Netanyahu’s moves as an effort to grab power and protect himself. Mr. Netanyahu is on trial for corruption.
Last week, Mr. Netanyahu said he was firing the leader of Israel’s security service, Ronen Bar. On Sunday, Mr. Netanyahu’s cabinet voted to get rid of the country’s attorney general, Gali Baharav-Miara. Mr. Netanyahu was being investigated by Mr. Bar. Ms. Baharav-Miara is in charge of the government group bringing the corruption case against Mr. Netanyahu.
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Last week, Mr. Netanyahu said he was firing the leader of Israel’s security service. On Sunday, his cabinet voted to get rid of the country’s attorney general. Protesters believe Mr. Netanyahu is trying to protect himself since he’s on trial for corruption. Above, Mr. Netanyahu during part of his trial on March 12.
Mr. Netanyahu’s moves have brought out tens of thousands of protesters. Israel has already faced large long-term protests over Israel’s war on Gaza.
Both Mr. Bar’s case and Ms. Baharav-Miara’s case could wind up in front of Israel’s Supreme Court.
If Mr. Netanyahu doesn’t accept the Supreme Court’s decisions, it could create an extremely serious political situation.
Serbia
On Saturday, as many as 325,000 people protested in Serbia’s capital, Belgrade. Protests have been going on for months, and are a challenge to President Aleksandar Vucic.
The protests were first organized by students upset over the collapse of a concrete roof at a train station in Novi Sad last November. The accident killed 15 people. The protesters believe the government didn’t do enough to make sure the roof was safe.
For over four months, the protests have grown. Students have been joined by more and more large groups, including teachers, farmers, lawyers, and others. The protesters have sometimes been attacked.
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Protests in Serbia have been going on for months. The protests were triggered by a deadly accident last November, and have grown into a larger anti-government movement. Above, protesters hold their phones last Friday as they gather outside the train station where the roof collapsed.
The protesters have several demands:
Punish those responsible for the accident
Openly share the investigation into the accident
Punish people who attacked protesters
More government money for education
At first, the government didn’t take the protesters seriously. Now many of the demands have been met. Mr. Vucic says the government has heard the protesters. “We will have to change ourselves,” he said.
But the protesters are still upset with the government and its response to the protests. The protests are likely to continue.
* Turkey has officially changed its name to Tûrkiye. This article uses the old name, Turkey, since that is more familiar to readers.