Mass protests continue in Turkey after the detention of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, one of the main political opponents of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan; on Friday alone, 343 demonstrators were detained in nine cities, including Ankara and Istanbul, Radio Liberty reports, citing the Turkish Ministry of Interior.
Interior Minister Ali Erlikaya accused the demonstrators of trying to “disrupt public order and provoke chaos.” In addition to the protesters, 56 other people were detained separately for allegedly inciting unrest through social media.
Imamoglu was detained in the morning of March 19. He and about 100 other people were accused of corruption crimes and the creation of a criminal group that was engaged in extortion from businesses.
Imamoglu, whom the Republican People’s Party (CHP) is preparing to nominate as a presidential candidate, called the case politically motivated. On social media, he said the investigation was a “political coup” and called on citizens to fight back.
The Turkish Ministry of Justice claims that the case has no political basis.
