Politics Political climate in Turkey continues to heat up
In Turkey, tens of thousands of people have once again protested against the imprisonment of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu and called on President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's government to resign.
25.03.2025, 06:05
SDA
Despite a ban on demonstrations, people took to the streets in Istanbul, Ankara and other cities across the country for the sixth evening in a row.
According to the Interior Ministry, more than 1,100 people have been arrested since the protests began, including at least ten journalists and photographers. More than 120 police officers have been injured. There are no official figures on the number of injured protesters. Erdogan described the mostly peaceful demonstrations as a "violent movement".
Imamoglu is considered Erdogan's most promising political challenger in the election scheduled for 2028 and was nominated as a candidate by the largest opposition party. He was arrested on Wednesday on charges of corruption and terrorism and was removed as mayor of the metropolis of Istanbul on Sunday. Imamoglu himself denies all allegations and accuses the government of wanting to use the investigations to politically silence him.
In Istanbul, Ankara, Izmir and other cities, tens of thousands of people have taken to the streets since Wednesday despite bans. On Sunday evening in particular, there were fierce clashes between police forces and demonstrators. The police reportedly used water cannons and tear gas.
CHP leader wants to visit Imamoglu in prison
On Monday evening, tens of thousands of people - including many students - once again marched to the central rally site in front of the city council headquarters in Istanbul. They waved Turkish flags and shouted anti-government slogans. TV footage showed numerous riot police and water cannons, but there were initially no reports of clashes.
According to reports, CHP leader Özgür Özel praised the demonstrators' actions in a speech as an "act of defiance against fascism". He announced that he would visit Imamoglu in Silivri prison today. The CHP will campaign for Imamoglu to be released pending trial and for his trial to be broadcast live on state television station TRT.
Erdogan calls demonstrators "street terrorists"
Erdogan, on the other hand, made serious accusations against the demonstrators. Apparently, the CHP is not bothered by the fact that "street terrorists" attacked the police with stones, sticks and axes. The judiciary will hold them accountable for this.
The demonstrations of the past few days are the largest in Turkey since the so-called Gezi protests of 2013. The largely peaceful protests were initially directed against a construction project in Istanbul's Gezi Park and later against the authoritarian policies of then Prime Minister and current President Erdogan. The government spoke of an attempted coup and had the protests brutally crushed.
