March 24, 2025 – Istanbul, Turkey’s largest city, has become the epicenter of nationwide unrest as tens of thousands of protesters have taken to the streets following the arrest of Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu, a prominent opposition leader and key rival to President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. The demonstrations, now in their fifth day, mark the largest wave of public dissent in Turkey in over a decade, with authorities reporting over 1,100 detentions, including several journalists.
İmamoğlu, 54, was detained last Wednesday, March 19, on charges of corruption and alleged ties to the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), a group designated as a terrorist organization by the Turkish government. On Sunday, a court formally ordered his pre-trial detention, a decision that has inflamed tensions and galvanized his supporters, who view the arrest as a politically motivated move to silence Erdoğan’s most formidable challenger ahead of the 2028 presidential election.
The protests began almost immediately after İmamoğlu’s arrest, with crowds gathering outside Istanbul University and the municipal headquarters in the Saraçhane district. Demonstrators, waving flags and chanting slogans like “Justice for İmamoğlu,” have clashed with riot police, who have deployed pepper spray, tear gas, and water cannons to disperse the gatherings. In Izmir, Turkey’s third-largest city, similar scenes unfolded as authorities struggled to contain the growing unrest.
“This is a coup against democracy,” said Özgür Özel, leader of the Republican People’s Party (CHP), to which İmamoğlu belongs. Speaking to a massive crowd in Istanbul on Sunday, Özel declared, “Ekrem İmamoğlu’s only crime is defeating Erdoğan three times in Istanbul and leading in the polls for president.” The CHP staged a symbolic primary election over the weekend, where nearly 15 million people cast “solidarity votes” for İmamoğlu as their presidential candidate, despite his incarceration.
President Erdoğan, who has led Turkey for over two decades, has dismissed claims of political interference, accusing the opposition of inciting “street terror” and vowing to maintain public order. In a televised address on Monday, he described the protests as a “movement of violence” orchestrated by the CHP and promised accountability for damaged property and injured police officers. “The days of directing politics through chaos are over,” he warned.
The international community has also weighed in. Germany and France have condemned İmamoğlu’s detention as a “serious setback” and an “attack on democracy,” respectively, while human rights groups have raised concerns about the broader crackdown, which includes the arrest of nine journalists covering the protests. The Turkish Journalists Union reported that the detained reporters were targeted for documenting police actions, further stoking fears of press suppression.
İmamoğlu’s arrest comes at a pivotal moment for Turkey, a NATO member grappling with economic woes and political polarization. Elected mayor of Istanbul in 2019, he ended a 25-year grip on the city by Erdoğan’s Justice and Development Party (AKP), a victory he solidified in a re-run election later that year and again in 2024. His charisma and moderate stance have made him a rising star in the opposition, with polls suggesting he could unseat Erdoğan in a head-to-head race.
From his cell in Silivri prison, west of Istanbul, İmamoğlu has remained defiant. “Tens of millions of people suffering under this oppressive government have rushed to the polls to say ‘enough is enough,’” he wrote in a statement released through city hall. His wife, Dilek Kaya İmamoğlu, addressed protesters on Sunday, shouting, “He will defeat you! You will lose!” as the crowd roared in support.
Analysts say the arrest could backfire on Erdoğan, whose approval ratings have faltered amid inflation and currency crises. “By jailing İmamoğlu, Erdoğan may have turned him into a martyr,” said Ayşe Yılmaz, a political scientist at Istanbul University. “These protests show a public that’s fed up—and they’re not backing down.”
As night falls on Istanbul, fresh crowds are gathering for a sixth consecutive day of demonstrations, undeterred by police crackdowns or government warnings. With no resolution in sight, Turkey stands at a crossroads, its democratic future hanging in the balance as the clash between Erdoğan and his rival intensifies.