Turkish President Erdogan’s main rival jailed
The main rival to Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has been formally arrested and charged with corruption.
Ekrem Imamoglu, the mayor of Istanbul, was due to be selected as the Republican People’s Party’s (CHP) 2028 presidential nominee in a vote on Sunday.
He has denied the allegations and said they are politically motivated. “I will never bow,” he wrote on X before he was remanded in custody.
His detention sparked some of Turkey’s largest protests in more than a decade. Erdogan has condemned the demonstrations and accused the CHP of trying to “disturb the peace and polarise our people”.
Imamoglu was one of more than 100 people, including other politicians, journalists and businessmen, detained as part of an investigation on Wednesday, triggering five consecutive nights of demonstrations.
Courtesy: BBC