Protests Erupt as Opposition Vows to Resist Imamoglu's Detention

Turkey's Government Warns Against Protests Following Imamoglu's Detention

The Turkish government issued a warning against "illegal" calls for street protests from the main opposition party, following the detention of Istanbul's mayor Ekrem Imamoglu. This comes after thousands demonstrated across the country in the last two days.

Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya reported that 53 people were detained and 16 police officers were injured in protests that began at university campuses, Istanbul municipal headquarters, and elsewhere on Thursday. These protests triggered scattered clashes.

Imamoglu, President Tayyip Erdogan's main political rival and leading him in some polls, was detained on Wednesday facing charges including graft and aiding a terrorist group. The mayor's main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) has condemned the move as politically-motivated and urged people to lawfully demonstrate. European leaders have also criticized the detention as democratic backsliding.

Yerlikaya and Justice Minister Yilmaz Tunc criticized the calls for action from CHP leader Ozgur Ozel as "irresponsible" amid a four-day ban on public gatherings.

"Gathering and marching in protest are fundamental rights. But calling to the streets over an ongoing legal investigation is illegal and unacceptable," Tunc said on X early on Friday.

Tunc emphasized that the courtroom was the place to respond to any legal process and called for calm, adding that the "independent and unbiased judiciary" was evaluating the case. He has warned against linking Erdogan to Imamoglu's arrest.

Demonstrations took place Thursday in Ankara, Izmir, and Istanbul, as well as other provinces across the country, with police erecting barricades on several main streets.

Erdogan dismissed the opposition's criticism as "theatrics" and "slogans" that distract from its internal mistakes.

"Hey Erdogan, you're most scared of the streets. We are now on the streets, in squares. Continue to be afraid."

"While you keep the one we elected in custody, we will not sit at home," he said before thousands of supporters.

"Mr. Tayyip, you are scared and you are asking, ‘are you calling people to the streets? Are you calling people to the squares?’ Yes. I didn’t fill up these squares or these streets, you did.”

Since Imamoglu's detention, many supporters had called for more concrete and organized action from the CHP, making Ozel's call a significant escalation of pressure on the government.