The mayor of Istanbul, Ekrem Imamoglu, one in all Turkey’s most outstanding opposition politicians, was arrested on Wednesday morning on costs associated to corruption and terrorism, the town’s prosecutor’s workplace mentioned.
A big group of law enforcement officials arrived at Mr. Imamoglu’s home and took him away, and numerous his aides had been additionally detained. Prosecutors mentioned arrest warrants had been issued for greater than 100 folks.
Mr. Imamoglu has been seen as a possible contender within the subsequent presidential election, scheduled for 2028, though early elections are doubtless. He and different opposition figures have accused President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s authorities of searching for to exclude Mr. Imamoglu from politics in order that he can not run within the election, presumably in opposition to Mr. Erdogan himself.
In a video posted on social media earlier than his arrest, Mr. Imamoglu accused the federal government of “usurping the need of the folks.”
“We face nice tyranny, however I need you to know that I cannot be discouraged,” he mentioned.
It is a growing story.
