Istanbul Mayor Imamoglu arrives to jail, pending trial in Turkiye

Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu has arrived at prison after a Turkish court formally placed him under arrest pending trial on corruption charges, days after his detention triggered mass protests across the country.

Imamoglu arrived at Marmara Prison on Sunday near Istanbul’s Silivri district, a Reuters news agency live broadcast showed. He has called for more nationwide protests.The court on Sunday said that Imamoglu and at least 20 others were jailed as part of a corruption investigation. The court in Istanbul did not press ‘terror’ charges against the 53-year-old jailed mayor.

“Although there is strong suspicion of aiding an armed terrorist organisation, since it has already been decided that he will be arrested for financial crimes, (his arrest) is not deemed necessary at this stage,” it said.

Al Jazeera’s Sinem Koseoglu, reporting from Istanbul, said several others who were also charged were ordered released pending trial.

Since ‘terror’ charges were not slapped on Imamoglu, the court won’t be able to appoint a government trustee to the municipality of Istanbul, the country’s largest city. The mayor will be elected from within the municipal council, Koseoglu said.‘Not bow down’
In his first response after the court ruling, Imamoglu said that he will not bow down.

“We will, hand in hand, uproot this blow, this black stain on our democracy… I am standing tall, I will not bow down,” the Istanbul mayor said in a post on X.

In another post, Imamoglu said the legal process over his detention was “a complete extrajudicial execution” which meant a “betrayal against Turkey”. Moreover, he called on Turks to hold mass demonstrations across the country against his arrest.CHP leader Ozgur Ozel told reporters that the party will file legal appeals against the court ruling. He said that the Istanbul municipality council would now elect someone to work as acting mayor while they await a ruling on Imamoglu.

The mayor, a key opposition figure and potential challenger to longtime President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, was detained on Wednesday by the government over alleged corruption and terrorism.

Imamoglu has denied all the charges, describing them as part of a “smear campaign”.

Ankara Mayor Mansur Yavas, an ally of Imamoglu, told reporters that the jailing is a disgrace to the judicial system.

The court’s decision to send Imamoglu to pre-trial detention comes after the opposition, European leaders and tens of thousands of protesters criticised the actions against him as politicised.

The government has denied the cases are politically motivated.