When demonstrators gathered at Istanbul City Hall last week, he was furious at Mayor Ekrem Imamor's arrest, and Azura, 26, said that at first he was too scared to refuse a ban on gatherings. She could no longer resist participating as protests grew in university campuses and in Turkish cities and towns.
“I saw sparks in people's eyes and excitement in their faces, and I decided I had to get off here,” she said with a laugh. Despite the crowd, Azura feared retaliation and refused to give her full name. Many demonstrators were covered in fear of tear gas and pepper sprays that could be deployed by police, ignoring facial recognition technology. Others smiled and took selfies to celebrate as the fireworks lit up the night sky.
The arrest of Türkiye's biggest city mayor in dawn raid last week was a fork in a long-term shift from democracy. Opponents of President Receptacle Tayip Erdogan are afraid that it will be a move to bystanders who can defeat him in the upcoming elections expected before 2028.
Imamol and more than 100 other people, including the mayor and the mayor's construction company, have issued detention orders and been accused of embezzlement and corruption. He also denied the terrorist accusations that had been levelled on him over cooperation with the left-wing political coalition before last local elections, seeing great losses for Erdogan's Justice and Development Party (AKP).
Justice Minister Yurmaz Chunne attempted to reject suspicions that accusations from the opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) against Imamomor and others had been politicized. “Relating a judicial investigation or case with the president is, to say the least, an act of boldness and irresponsibility,” he said.
Within a few days, what began as a protest in response to Imamall's detention grew into something more. “This is bigger than Imamolu. It's about the fight for democracy, law, and equal rights,” Azura flaunted her on a massive scale.
The Turkish president has long tried to regain Istanbul from opposition control. It promoted the joy of protesters who refused to ban gatherings in the city where Erdogan began his political career as mayor. Hundreds of cheers pour into the streets, breaking into anti-government chants, slamming escalators and standing outside the metro station as another protester, a protester named Dealer, slamming another protester called “a response to pressure accumulated over the years.”
“There are issues with the economy, education and health systems,” she said, nodding to the economic crisis that has skyrocketed in the cost of living. “We're tired of this government.”
Supporters of the mayor said 300,000 people joined the demonstrations in Istanbul on Friday night, but the video showed protesters taking them to the streets and clashing with police in major towns and cities around the country. Turkish Home Minister Ali Yarikaya said 343 people were detained in nine cities after participating in the demonstrations.
Turkish authorities ratcheted attempts to suppress the growing protest, including blocking traffic across two bridges leading to Istanbul's city hall and locking in several nearby boulevards with riot police lines.
Erdogan expressed his increasing dissatisfaction with the opposition chief's call for demonstration, saying, “Turkey is not a country on the streets, and will not surrender to street terrorism.”
Despite domestic rage in Imamall's detention, international responses remained stifled. The clearest response is financial, estimated that the Central Bank of Türkiye has spent a record $11.5 billion Supporting Lila The day after Imamol's arrest when investors fled and the currency fell sharply.
Reactions elsewhere have been much less impactful. A spokesman for the UN executive director said he hopes that “normal rules for the due process will be followed,” but U.S. State Department spokesman Tammy Bruce said Washington “will not comment on the internal decision-making process of other countries.”
US President Donald Trump and Erdogan spoke on the phone just days before Imamol's arrest in reports that Turkish leaders are seeking a meeting at the White House in the coming months.
US Middle Eastern envoy Steve Witkoff told right-wing expert Tucker Carlson in an interview that Trump and Erdogan's conversations are “transformative,” adding, “I think there's a lot of good, positive news coming out of Turkey right now.”
“The international climate makes Erdogan feel very confident,” says Gönül Tol, an analyst at the Washington-based Middle East Institute.
“The US president is undermining democracy there. That means the US is turning inwards. He doesn't care what other foreign dictators are doing to their people. These things really affect the global environment that dictators think they can hope for.”
Criticizing Erdogan, such as France's Emmanuel Macron, has previously swiftly criticised Erdogan, but has yet to express his opposition to the Turkish events, saying that he can turn more and more attention to Ankara to supply Ukrainian peacekeeping forces.
“The move to Russia in Ukraine has caused Europeans to panic and try to support their defense,” Thor said. “In this environment where Europe feels that it has to protect itself against Russia alone, there's more to talk about fascinating Erdogan.”
Ursula von der Leyen of the European Commission has become the highest ranked official offering criticism, saying that Turkey must “protect democratic values, in particular the rights of elected officials.”
Sonar Kagaptei, Erdogan's biographer and an analyst at the Washington Near East Policy Institute, said such a statement is unlikely to encourage policy changes.
“There is no significance of action to follow. Erdogan has not sanctioned the top and refuses to include Turkey in its future plans. There will not be any concrete impact due to the way Turkey has positioned it as a key force on this new global stage,” he said.
The CHP is expected to move forward by declaring its presidential candidate this weekend after an iconic major vote. People outside the city hall had argued that Mayor of Istanbul should remain a candidate for the opposition, even if it meant he would flee prison.
Cagaptay said the driving force to negate Imamol could still backfire, despite the lack of international criticism. Erdogan was temporarily imprisoned in the 1990s, and the mayor of Istanbul promoted his support and burned his run for national politics.
“He went into prison as mayor and left as a national hero,” Cagaptay said.
“Erdogan bets that this won't happen 1742661376 With the capture of the state, he has control of his institutions and media, and he is not worried about international criticism. ”
