Jailed Istanbul Mayor İmamoğlu now faces espionage charges
Turkey’s opposition leader calls the new case a plot to remove him from office. For observers and government opponents, this is another attempt to take over the city after the ruling AKP lost at the polls. Erdoğan dual track includes repression for opponents and critics at home, and peace mediation abroad (Gaza and Syria).
Istanbul (AsiaNews) – Ekrem İmamoğlu, Istanbul’s mayor and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's main rival, is now facing accusations of “political espionage”. He is already in prison since March after he was charged with corruption and links to terrorist organisations.
A court issued an arrest warrant for the mayor of Turkey’s business capital, marking a further step in the president’s repression against his opponents. Issuing a warrant for a person already in prison is far from unusual in the country.
For critics and many ordinary Turks who took to the streets again today in defiance of a ban, the new charges are a sign of the government’s political use of the justice system, a view the latter rejects, claiming instead that Turkish courts are independent.
Amid mounting attacks and accusations by the authorities, İmamoğlu appeared late yesterday morning before the court to answer the new charges, while about a thousand of his supporters gathered outside the Caglayan Courthouse.
Several hours later, his party released a statement, reported by the Turkish press, in which he rejected the accusations.
“I have absolutely no knowledge of or connection with the intelligence agencies or their employees," he said, branding the allegations as "absurd”, linked to a plot to remove him from the political scene.
“It would be more realistic to say that I burned Rome,” he stated.
Under close surveillance by riot police, Republican People's Party (CHP) leader Özgür Özel addressed a crowd of supporters and sympathisers gathered outside the courthouse to protest the new legal case against the mayor.
“They called him a thief, it didn’t work; they called him corrupt, it didn’t work; they accused him of supporting terrorism, it didn’t work,” the CHP leader said of İmamoğlu. “Now, as a last resort, they tried to call him a spy. Shame on them!,” he shouted.
Meanwhile, Özel too has become the target of legal action, as has his party, the main opposition party. But last Friday, a court rejected a lawsuit against the Republican People's Party (CHP), which the government had initiated to annul its 2023 congress and the election of its new leader.
The court decision seemed to have somewhat weakened President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's attempt to browbeat its main rival after it ruled that the irregularities the government alleged had no legal relevance.
Nevertheless, scores of CHP mayors and high-ranking officials have been put on trial or convicted.
For many observers, the latest charges against İmamoğlu, are an attempt by the government and the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) to seize control of Istanbul, a key place, after they were defeated in local elections.
For İmamoğlu, the charges are just “slander, lies and conspiracy” but if an indictment is made, it would pave the way for a government-appointed governor to take over the city.
According to GlobalSource Partners analyst Atilla Yesilada, the Turkish Interior Ministry has the authority to sack İmamoğlu and replace him with a trustee, which would deal a severe blow to the main opposition party.
Amid no international outcry, last month, a court, with the government's approval, effectively dismissed the leaders of the Republican People's Party (CHP) in Istanbul, placing the party under special administration.
Several arrests were carried out among protesters, the Internet was shut down, and a ban was imposed on protests in an attempt to suppress dissent and discontent among Turks opposed to Erdoğan’s slide towards authoritarian rule.
The crackdown is part of a broader campaign that intensified following the opposition's landslide victories in local elections in March 2024.
Since last October, police and prosecutors have conducted investigations into corruption and terrorism followed by hundreds of arrests. Dozens of CHP mayors and councillors are in jail waiting to be tried, along with the most prominent, Istanbul mayor. Given the situation, the CHP moved its provincial headquarters in Istanbul.
The crackdown is having repercussions on the economy, causing market turmoil while raising concerns among foreign investors.
While the Turkish government and President Erdoğan are cracking down on their opponents and critics at home, internationally they are seeking to capitalise on their role as a regional player in the Middle East, including a role in the Gaza truce and the would-be stabilisation force.
This attempt to boost their image is well represented by the picture in Sharm el-Sheikh showing Erdoğan in the front row next to Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and US President Donald Trump, architect of the Gaza peace plan.
Recently Erdoğan has also insisted on guaranteeing Turkey a role in other crises, from Syria to Ukraine. “Now there is a Turkey in the region and in the world that is reputed for its promise and exports peace and stability,” the Turkish leader said.
Turkey's claim to be a leader in peacemaking comes with some show of force. British Prime Minister Keir Starmer is expected to visit Turkey to discuss the sale of 40 Eurofighter Typhoon jets, which Erdoğan wants to bolster Turkey’s air force, alongside US F-16s and F-35s.
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