The mayor of Istanbul, Ekrem Imamoglu, one of Turkey’s most prominent opposition politicians, was arrested on Wednesday morning on charges related to corruption and terrorism, the city’s prosecutor’s office said.
A large group of police officers arrived at Mr. Imamoglu’s house and took him away, and a number of his aides were also detained. Prosecutors said that arrest warrants had been issued for more than 100 people.
Mr. Imamoglu has been seen as a likely contender in the next presidential election, scheduled for 2028, although early elections are likely.
Mr. Imamoglu and other opposition figures have accused President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s government of seeking to exclude him from politics so that he cannot run in the election, possibly against Mr. Erdogan.
In a video posted on social media before his arrest, Mr. Imamoglu spoke from inside his closet as he knotted his tie and accused the government of “usurping the will of the people.”
“We are facing great tyranny, but I want you to know that I will not be discouraged,” he said.
Critics have long accused Mr. Erdogan, Turkey’s predominant politician for more than two decades and its president since 2014, of using state institutions, including the courts and the security services, to undermine his political rivals. Mr. Erdogan’s defenders cite his history of electoral victories as proof of his popularity.
The Istanbul prosecutor’s office said in a statement that Mr. Imamoglu was accused of leading a criminal organization. Prosecutors say he took part in corrupt practices in municipal business and accused him of engaging in bribery, fraud, money laundering, personal enrichment and bid rigging.
He also faces separate charges of aiding a terrorist organization through his cooperation with a pro-Kurdish political party during last year’s municipal elections, prosecutors said. Mr. Imamoglu handily won that election against a candidate backed by Mr. Erdogan.
In a voice message sent before his arrest and shared by his aides, Mr. Imamoglu accused Mr. Erdogan, his aides and public prosecutors of engineering his arrest.
“This immoral and tyrannical approach will undoubtedly be overturned by the will and resilience of our people,” he said.
The office of Istanbul’s governor, who is appointed by Mr. Erdogan, took steps on Wednesday in an apparent effort to head off protests about the arrests.
Public demonstrations have been banned in the city for four days and two subway stations were closed, including in Taksim Square, a central transportation hub and large plaza where rallies have often been held.
Turkey also restricted access to social media platforms including X, YouTube, TikTok and Instagram, according to NetBlocks, an internet monitor.
Mr. Imamoglu’s arrest follows numerous court cases and other procedural moves against him that the opposition says aim to eliminate him as a political force.
In recent years, he has faced charges of corruption during his previous role as an Istanbul district mayor, and he is appealing a 2022 conviction on charges of insulting judges on the Supreme Electoral Council, which oversees elections.
Some of the cases against him could result in his being barred from politics, meaning that he could be ousted as mayor and prohibited from running for president.
On Wednesday, Mr. Imamoglu’s alma mater, Istanbul University, announced that it had annulled his diploma, citing improper procedures in his transfer in 1990 from a university in Turkish-controlled Northern Cyprus. The Turkish Constitution stipulates that presidential candidates must be university graduates.
Mr. Imamoglu has argued that there was nothing improper about his transfer and that a previous government inquiry into the matter had found nothing amiss.
Last month, the Istanbul prosecutor’s office requested a new inquiry, which led to the cancellation of his diploma, a decision that Mr. Imamoglu is expected to appeal.
The arrest and diploma annulment came just days before the opposition Republican People’s Party was expected to officially select Mr. Imamoglu as its candidate in the next presidential election.
The head of the party, Ozgur Ozel, called on party members to go ahead with the scheduled primary vote on Sunday. “We are faced with a coup attempt against our next president,” Mr. Ozel wrote on social media.
Although Turkey’s next presidential election is scheduled for 2028, most experts expect that Parliament will call for an earlier vote. The Constitution limits presidents to two terms and Mr. Erdogan is in his second, but early elections could give him an opportunity to run again, on the grounds that he did not complete his second term.
Neither Mr. Erdogan nor officials from his governing Justice and Development Party have publicly discussed who their candidate will be, but Mr. Erdogan, 71, has no clear successor and is widely expected to run.
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