Turkey's Erdogan says unseating of mayors to be rare after PKK disbands
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Wednesday he believes Turkey's practice of appointing state 'trustees' to replace elected mayors will become a rare occurrence once the PKK militant group acts on its decision to disband.
Erdogan was speaking to lawmakers from his AK Party in parliament.Turkey has repeatedly unseated and replaced dozens of elected pro-Kurdish party mayors after recent elections over alleged PKK links. It has also replaced mayors from the main opposition party.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Asharq Al-Awsat
3 hours ago
- Asharq Al-Awsat
Turkish President Telephones Saudi Crown Prince to Praise Kingdom's Organization of Hajj
Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Saudi Crown Prince and Prime Minister, received on Friday a telephone call from Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Erdogan praised the excellent organization of this year's Hajj and commended the Kingdom's successful measures to ensure the safety and security of pilgrims. The Crown Prince and the Turkish president also exchanged greetings on the occasion of Eid Al-Adha.
Arab News
8 hours ago
- Arab News
Saudi crown prince speaks with Turkish President Erdogan
RIYADH: Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman spoke on the phone on Thursday with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. President Erdogan began the call by commending the Kingdom for the successful organization of this year's Hajj season and the effective measures taken to ensure the safety and security of pilgrims, the Saudi Press Agency reported. The Turkish leader also extended Eid Al-Adha greetings to the Crown Prince, who in turn offered his congratulations on the occasion to President Erdogan.
Asharq Al-Awsat
a day ago
- Asharq Al-Awsat
Turkish Prosecutors Investigate Main Opposition Leader in Crackdown
Prosecutors have opened an investigation into the leader of Türkiye's main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) on charges of threatening and insulting Istanbul's chief prosecutor, adding to a broad crackdown on the opposition. The clampdown is centred on Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, who is President Tayyip Erdogan's main political rival and leads him in some opinion polls. The CHP's Imamoglu was jailed in March pending trial on corruption charges, which he denies, according to Reuters. The Istanbul prosecutor's office said in a statement that it had launched the probe into CHP leader Ozgur Ozel over comments he made about the chief prosecutor at a rally in Istanbul on Wednesday, criticising the targeting of the opposition. CHP spokesman Deniz Yucel criticised the decision to open the investigation. "We will not succumb to this system of lawlessness that you have created," he said on X, addressing the authorities. In another step, Türkiye's Interior Ministry dismissed three Istanbul district mayors who were arrested this week as part of the corruption investigations at the municipality, state media said on Thursday. The ministry also removed from their posts two mayors who were arrested under the same investigations in the southern province of Adana, state-owned Anadolu news agency reported. All five of these mayors are from the CHP. Imamoglu's arrest in March triggered mass protests, economic turmoil and broad accusations of government influence over the judiciary and anti-democratic applications. The government denies the accusations and says the judiciary is independent. Since his arrest, authorities have detained dozens of CHP members, officials from the Istanbul municipality, and other CHP-run municipalities. Access to Imamoglu's X account was also blocked in Türkiye this month.
