Thousands defy Erdoğan’s warning against marching in İstanbul

Thousands of protesters marched in İstanbul late Friday in support of its detained mayor, defying a warning from Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, who said authorities would crack down on “street terror,” Agence France-Presse reported.

It was the third night in a row of demonstrations backing Ekrem İmamoğlu — Erdoğan’s chief political rival — who was detained on Wednesday, just days before he is expected to be formally named as a candidate in the country’s 2028 presidential election.

Protests over İmamoğlu’s detention began in İstanbul on Wednesday and quickly spread to at least 32 of Turkey’s 81 provinces, according to an AFP count.

Turkey’s main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP), which intends to make İmamoğlu its presidential candidate, has described his detention as a “coup.”

Its leader, Özgur Özel, called for the third nightly protest in İstanbul and across Turkey. At least 10,000 people responded in İstanbul late Friday, marching towards the City Hall, AFP journalists said.

“Don’t be silent, otherwise they’ll come for you!” protesters yelled. Many held placards with slogans such as “Don’t be afraid, the people are here” and “Rights, law, justice.”

Earlier, Erdoğan warned that “Turkey will not surrender to street terror.”

“Let me say it loud and clear: The street protests the CHP leader has called for are a dead end,” Erdoğan warned. His government has termed the protests “unlawful.”

İstanbul’s governor closed off the main access routes to the peninsula where City Hall is located — including the Galata and Atatürk bridges and main roads.

Authorities also extended the protest ban to the capital of Ankara and the western coastal city of İzmir.

On Thursday, police fired rubber bullets and teargas as they scuffled with students holding demonstrations in İstanbul and Ankara, according to AFP correspondents.

So far, at least 88 protesters have been detained, Turkish media said, with Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya saying 16 police officers had been hurt.

Police had also detained another 54 people for online posts authorities deemed “incitement to hatred,” he said.

‘Opposition drama’

In a speech on Friday Erdoğan accused the opposition leader of “serious irresponsibility” after Özel on Thursday vowed the protests would continue.

The pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party) also said it would join Friday’s İstanbul rally.

Officials said İmamoğlu and six others were under investigation for “aiding a terrorist organization” — the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) militant group.

He is also under scrutiny in a graft probe involving about 100 other suspects.

Investigators reportedly began questioning İmamoğlu on Friday, local media reported, saying all of the suspects were due in court on Sunday morning.

Primary

Despite İmamoğlu’s detention, the CHP said it would press ahead with its primary on Sunday at which it would formally nominate him as its candidate for the 2028 race.

The party said it would open the process to anyone who wanted to vote, not just party members, saying, “Come to the ballot box and say ‘no’ to the coup attempt!”

Observers said the government could seek to block the primary to prevent a further show of support for İmamoğlu.

“If a large number of people show up and vote for İmamoğlu, it will further legitimize him domestically,” Gönül Tol, head of the Turkish studies program at the Washington-based Middle East Institute, told AFP.

“It could really move things in a direction that Erdoğan doesn’t want.”

Restrictions on social media and internet access that had been in place since İmamoğlu’s detention were lifted early Friday, said internet access monitor EngelliWeb.

The move against İmamoğlu has dealt a heavy blow to the Turkish lira, and on Friday the BIST 100 stock exchange was trading lower, shedding nearly 8 percent just before 1400 GMT.