The mayor of Istanbul, Ekrem İmamoğlu, was arrested this morning along with more than a hundred other suspects as part of two investigations launched by the public prosecutor’s office that include accusations of corruption and links with members of terrorist groups, and which relate to events that occurred during İmamoğlu’s current term as metropolitan mayor of the city, as well as during his time in previous public office.
The news has been on the front page of all the media outlets in Turkey this morning, which report that a total of 106 arrest warrants have been issued against various individuals. A large number of police officers searched the residence of İmamoğlu early this morning, who faces charges including bribery and extortion, according to the prosecution, which accuses him of being part of a ‘criminal organisation’. Other senior officials arrested include Mehmet Murat Çalık, who succeeded İmamoğlu as mayor of the Beylikdüzü district in 2019 after the latter was elected mayor of Istanbul, Resul Ekrem Şahan – mayor of the Şişli district – and Murat Ongun, former spokesman for Istanbul municipality and currently one of İmamoğlu’s closest collaborators.
One of the investigations that led to today’s arrests focuses precisely on accusations of corruption during İmamoğlu’s term as mayor of the Beylikdüzü district from 2014 to 2019. The prosecution accuses Imamoğlu and others involved of ‘running a criminal organisation’, participating in systematic acts of bribery, fraud, extortion, coercion and obtaining illicit funds, part of which ended up in a construction company run by Imamoğlu himself.
The investigation was launched as a result of statements made by several witnesses and a controversial video showing members of the CHP party – to which İmamoğlu belongs – counting large amounts of dirty money intended to ‘buy’ the votes of the delegates who supported Özgür Özel to be elected secretary general of the CHP in the party’s 2023 primary elections, in a plot led by the current mayor of Istanbul.
The second parallel investigation that has led to the arrests in recent hours is related to charges of links with members of the PKK terrorist group. According to the Istanbul prosecutor’s office, an organisation linked to the PKK allegedly secretly supported Imamoğlu and other CHP mayors in the last municipal elections, in exchange for which the CHP-ruled municipalities allegedly hired people related to the terrorist group. Şahan, mayor of the Istanbul district of Şişli, and Mahir Polat, deputy secretary of the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality, are also among those detained as part of this investigation.
‘I will not give up,’ says İmamoğlu
In a video posted on social media and made while the police were trying to enter his residence, Ekrem İmamoğlu promised to remain ‘firm and continue the fight’. ‘I say this with deep sadness: those who are trying to usurp the will of our nation have forced my beloved police officers to take part in this crime by gathering at the door of 16 million Istanbulites. I want you to know that I will not give up,’ said the mayor.
For his part, the secretary general of the Republican People’s Party (CHP), Özgür Özel, condemned what he called a “coup against our next president”. ‘Making decisions on behalf of the people, using force to replace the will of the people or obstructing it, is a coup. We will not give up. In the end, the will of the people will prevail and Turkey will win,’ Özel said in a statement posted on the social network X, formerly Twitter.
Özel’s words refer precisely to İmamoğlu’s plans to stand in the primary elections that the CHP is planning to hold on 23 March to choose its official candidate for the presidential elections of 2028, and in which İmamoğlu is so far the only candidate after gathering the support of more than a hundred party deputies.
However, the current metropolitan mayor’s political aspirations were severely curtailed yesterday, after Istanbul University announced that it is withdrawing the university degree from İmamoğlu, following another open investigation in which there is serious evidence that the degree was obtained illegally and is fake: in Turkey, all candidates for President of the Republic must be over 40 years of age and hold at least one university degree, according to the Constitution.
Istanbul police on high alert
Following the arrest of Ekrem İmamoğlu, the governor of Istanbul announced a ban on protests and demonstrations in the city for four days – precisely the length of time that İmamoğlu is expected to remain in custody – in order to avoid public disturbances; likewise, several public transport services to places such as Taksim Square have been suspended, and access to the central Vatan Avenue, close to the metropolitan city hall, has been cut off.
Many Turkish users have also reported problems in accessing social networks, while various media outlets report that all police officers in the city are on maximum alert and all permits have been revoked. Throughout this week it will be known whether the mayor of Istanbul will be imprisoned as part of the investigation, or whether he will finally be released.
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Edited and reviewed by:
Pablo Gómez is a specialist in Turkey and has been editor-in-chief of Hispanatolia since 2011. He has been analysing current affairs and geopolitics in Turkey and the surrounding region since 2006.
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