The arrest of Istanbul’s elected mayor just days before he was expected to declare his candidacy against Erdogan sparks countrywide protests.
Ozgur Ozil, the leader of the Republican People's Party of Turkey, announced the presence of thousands of protesters on Saturday night.
“We are 300,000 people; the streets and bridges have been closed to prevent gathering in a single place, so the demonstrators have gathered in several different places,” he said while addressing a crowd in front of the Istanbul Municipality building.
Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu detained just days before he was expected to declare his candidacy for the next presidential election.
On Saturday, he appeared before police for questioning on terror-related charges, a day after being interrogated over corruption allegations.
Imamoglu, a key opposition figure and potential challenger to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in the 2028 presidential election, has strongly denied all charges, with the opposition Republican People's Party of Turkey calling his arrest a political move.
The mayor’s arrest this week has sparked widespread protests across Turkey, with demonstrators rallying in multiple cities to voice their opposition.
While the government has dismissed the opposition-led protests as a show of force and a distraction from domestic problems, the opposition leaders have urged their supporters to continue the protests, accusing President Erdogan of being afraid of public unrest.
The protests have continued despite the government’s efforts to crack down on them, with protesters vowing not to rest until Imamoglu is released.
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