Turkish police arrested 10 senior district municipality officials in Istanbul on Tuesday, accusing them of ties to Kurdish militants, Anadolu Agency said. The arrested include the deputy mayors of Kartal and Atasehir, as well as eight members of district municipal councils, all from the country’s main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP). They are accused of appointing people with alleged ties to Kurdish militants to municipal positions, which allegedly allowed the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) to infiltrate these municipalities.
Detentions target Imamoglu and other opposition figures, critics claim.
Critics say the detentions are part of a larger campaign by the government to weaken Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, a key opposition figure and potential future challenger to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The Erdogan administration denies allegations of judicial pressure, claiming that Turkey‘s courts operate independently.
Imamoglu blames Erdogan for politically motivated detentions
Imamoglu, whose party made significant gains in Istanbul and nationwide during the 2023 local elections, blamed Erdogan for the detentions. He stated on social media that this move was a result of “the whims of one person who considers himself to be above the will of the people.”
Imamoglu faces a jail sentence due to several charges, among which is criticism of the legal investigations against him and fellow mayors. In 2022, he was sentenced for insulting the public official when he criticized an annullation decision for the local elections that resulted in his winning in the first round in 2019. A higher court may uphold the ban imposed on his political career for five years if he is convicted.
Wider crackdown on opposition mayors linked to PKK allegation
The detentions and arrests follow a wider clampdown on opposition officials as several pro-Kurdish mayors were dismissed based on alleged links with PKK. The positions are now filled with state-appointed officials, even though the pro-Kurdish party denies all the alleged links to the banned organization.
