Turkey Arrests Five Opposition Mayors Amid Corruption Probe

Turkey Arrests Five Opposition Mayors Amid Corruption Probe
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Turkish police arrested five mayors from the opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) early Wednesday, along with 17 others, as part of an ongoing investigation into alleged corruption in CHP-run municipalities, Arab News reported.

The recent arrests include a former lawmaker and three CHP mayors from Istanbul, as well as two mayors from Adana province in southern Turkey. This brings the total number of jailed CHP mayors to nine, including Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, a key political rival to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

The probe began over the weekend when a court issued arrest warrants for 47 municipal officials linked to four separate corruption cases focused on Istanbul. Imamoglu was arrested and jailed on March 19, triggering the largest street protests in Turkey in over a decade.

Authorities have also detained nearly 70 individuals connected to alleged corruption at Istanbul City Hall, including Imamoglu’s private secretary and security officer. Imamoglu is the CHP’s presidential candidate for the 2028 elections, but his eligibility depends on the outcomes of ongoing trials.