Turkish authorities detained President Tayyip Erdogan’s main political rival on Wednesday on charges including corruption and aiding a terrorist group in what the main opposition party called “a coup against our next president.”
The move against Ekrem Imamoglu, the popular mayor of Istanbul, caps a months-long legal crackdown on opposition figures across the country, which has been criticized as a politicized attempt to hurt their electoral prospects.
Turkey’s lira currency crashed 12% to an all-time low of 42 to the dollar in response, underscoring worries over the eroding rule of law in the major emerging market and NATO member country that Erdogan has run for 22 years.
The government denies the opposition charges and says the judiciary is independent. It is meanwhile pressing to end a decades-long insurgency by the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) after its jailed leader called for disarmament last month, in what could be a big step toward regional peace.
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Imamoglu, 54, who leads Erdogan in some opinion polls, faces two separate investigations that also include charges of leading a crime organization, bribery, and tender rigging. In a video posted on social media, the two-term mayor said he would not give up and would continue standing straight in the face of pressure, as he fixed his tie and prepared to leave his home for detention on Wednesday morning.
The main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) was ready to name him its official presidential challenger to Erdogan within days.
The next election is set for 2028 but Erdogan has reached his two-term limit as president, after having earlier served as prime minister. If he wishes to run again he must call an early election ahead of finishing his term, or change the constitution.
Erdogan faced his worst electoral defeat last year when Imamoglu’s CHP swept Turkey’s major cities and defeated his ruling AK Party in former strongholds in nationwide municipal elections.
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CHP leader Ozgur Ozel called the detention a coup attempt and urged opposition groups to unite. The party will go ahead and select Imamoglu as leader on Sunday irrespective, he added before heading to Istanbul from the capital Ankara.
“Turkey is going through a coup against the next President. We are facing a coup attempt here,” he said.
Human Rights Watch called the charges against the mayor “politically motivated and bogus,” and said he must be released immediately.
Erdogan’s office did not immediately comment when asked about claims that the detention was a political move.
According to a statement by the Istanbul prosecutor’s office on the first investigation, a total of 100 people including journalists and businessmen are suspected of being involved in criminal activities related to certain tenders awarded by the municipality.
It said that a second investigation charged Imamoglu and six others with aiding the PKK, which is deemed a terrorist organisation by Turkey and its Western allies.
Last month, the PKK declared a ceasefire in response to jailed leader Abdullah Ocalan’s call for disarmament, marking a big step toward ending an insurgency that has left more than 40,000 dead, and that could have regional security and political ramifications.
Imamoglu’s detention came a day after Istanbul University annulled Imamoglu’s degree, which if upheld would block him from running in presidential elections.
The Istanbul governor’s office banned all meetings and protests in the city for four days. Turkey also restricted access to social media platforms including X, YouTube, Instagram and TikTok, an internet observatory said.
The widening legal crackdown includes numerous indictments and the appointments of several government trustees to opposition-held municipal positions. As part of it, nationalist party leader Umit Ozdag has been detained since January.