Latest news with #ZeydanKaralar
Rudaw Net
12 hours ago
- Politics
- Rudaw Net
Turkey detains three opposition mayors
Also in Turkey Poll shows 65 percent support for Turkey-PKK peace Hope for peace grows with new library in Turkey's Hakkari New superstition emerges in Diyarbakir AKP lawmaker labels Kurdistan Region's role in PKK disarmament 'very important' A+ A- ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Turkish authorities on Saturday detained three mayors as part of an investigation into corruption, state media reported. All three are members of the main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP). The mayors of the southern cities of Antalya and Adana, as well as the southeastern Kurdish city of Adiyaman (Semsur) were arrested on charges of fixing tenders through bribing mayors and senior municipal executives, according to the state-owned Anadolu Agency. 'This morning, I was detained from my house in Ankara. I am being taken to Istanbul,' Adiyaman Mayor Abdurrahman Tutdere said on X. Zeydan Karalar, mayor of Adana, vowed to 'continue the struggle' after he was detained. The arrests are part of a wider investigation into alleged graft within CHP-led administrations, according to Anadolu. Ankara mayor and CHP strongman Mansur Yavas blasted the arrests as a targeted campaign against the party. 'In a system where the law is bent and twisted according to politics, where justice is applied for one segment and ignored for another, no one should expect us to trust the rule of law or believe in justice,' he said on X. 'We will not bow to injustice, unlawfulness, and political operations.' In Turkey's 2024 municipal elections, Karalar received 46.7 percent of the vote, Tutdere scored 49.7 percent, and Antalya's Muhittin Bocek took 71.4 percent. The practice of dismissing elected officials has been ongoing for years. Dozens of mainly Kurdish mayors have been removed from their posts since 2016 and sentenced on terrorism-related charges for alleged ties to the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), which Ankara has designated a terrorist organization. More recently, the AKP-led government has cracked down on CHP and other opposition mayors, detaining them largely on cases of alleged corruption. On Thursday, a raid sparked by an alleged corruption case at the Izmir Metropolitan Municipality - a key CHP bastion - resulted in the arrests of 60 people, including former Izmir mayor Tunc Soyer and the head of CHP's Izmir branch Senol Aslanoglu. In March, Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu was sacked from his position on charges of corruption. Considered the main rival of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in the upcoming 2028 elections, his arrest sparked Turkey's worst unrest in a decade, which in turn led to a massive crackdown on protests. The dismissed mayors are replaced with state-appointed trustees.
LBCI
13 hours ago
- Politics
- LBCI
Turkey arrests three more opposition mayors
Turkey arrested three more opposition mayors early on Saturday, media reports said, indicating it was part of an investigation into alleged organized crime. The arrests targeted the mayors of the southern city of Adana, Zeydan Karalar, and of the southeastern town of Adiyaman, Abdurrahman Tutderethe, Anadolu state news agency said. The leftwing Sozcu newspaper said the mayor of the southern resort town of Antalya was also detained. AFP
Middle East Eye
16 hours ago
- Politics
- Middle East Eye
Three more opposition mayors arrested in Turkey
Three opposition mayors have been arrested in Turkey in what the Republican People's Party (CHP) have a branded a "political operation". Adana Mayor Zeydan Karalar, Antalya Mayor Muhittin Bocek and Adiyaman Mayor Abdurrahman Tutdere were all arrested on Saturday as part of an investigation into corruption allegations that have already seen the imprisonment of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu. It follows the arrest of more than 120 people earlier this week as part of an investigation into alleged corruption in the opposition stronghold of Izmir, the country's third-largest city. The CHP, the largest opposition party in Turkey, has accused the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) and President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of targeting them after widespread success in the 2024 local elections and polling suggesting Imamoglu could unseat the president in a future election. Mansur Yavas, CHP mayor of the capital Ankara, criticised the arrests on X, saying his party would not bow to "unlawfulness". New MEE newsletter: Jerusalem Dispatch Sign up to get the latest insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters "In a system where the law is bent and twisted according to politics, where justice is applied for one segment and ignored for another, no one should expect us to trust the rule of law or believe in justice," he wrote. According to the state-run Anadolu Agency, the mayors of Adana and Adiyaman were linked to a case involving alleged tender-rigging and corruption. Police also arrested Ahmet Sahin, deputy mayor of Istanbul's Buyukcekmece district. The mayor of Antalya was detained in a separate investigation into corruption allegations, while police also arrested his son. The left-wing Peoples' Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party) also condemned the arrests on social media. Turkey passes first 'far from ideal' climate change bill as heatwave ravages country Read More » "This persecution of elected officials must stop," wrote Tulay Hatimogullari, co-chair of the party, on X. "Failure to recognise the will of the people is causing deep divisions within society - these operations are not a solution, but rather block the path to a democratic Turkiye." Typically the interior ministry only has the power to replace elected mayors if they are suspected of terrorism offences. Under the municipal law, if a mayor is suspended over corruption investigations a deputy mayor is selected by the city council and since the CHP holds a majority in the councils of all three cities they will not lose control. On Monday, an Ankara court began examining a case involving allegations of vote-buying in the party's 2023 primaries. The move could lead to the annulment of the election of its leader Ozgur Ozel, who has become well-known for organising protests against the imprisonment of Imamoglu.
Arab News
20 hours ago
- Politics
- Arab News
3 mayors arrested in southern Turkey as part of crackdown on opposition
ISTANBUL: The mayors of three major cities in southern Turkey were arrested Saturday, state-run media reported, joining a growing list of opposition figures detained since the mayor of Istanbul was imprisoned in March. Abdurrahman Tutdere, the mayor of Adiyaman, and Zeydan Karalar, who heads Adana municipality, were detained in early morning raids, according to Anadolu Agency. Both are members of the main opposition Republican People's Party, or CHP. The CHP mayor of Antalya, Muhittin Bocek, was arrested with two other suspects in a separate bribery investigation by the Antalya Chief Public Prosecutor's Office, Anadolu reported. Karalar was arrested in Istanbul and Tutdere was arrested in the capital, Ankara, where he has a home. Tutdere posted on X that he was being taken to Istanbul. Ten people, including Karalar and Tutdere, were arrested as part of an investigation by the Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor's Office into allegations involving organized crime, bribery and bid-rigging. Details of the charges against them were not immediately released by prosecutors but the operation follows the arrests of scores of officials from municipalities controlled by the CHP in recent months. Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, widely considered the main challenger to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan 's 22-year rule, was jailed four months ago over corruption allegations. The former CHP mayor of Izmir, Turkey's third-largest city, and 137 municipal officials were detained earlier this week as part of an investigation into alleged tender-rigging and fraud. On Friday, ex-mayor Tunc Soyer and 59 others were jailed pending trial in what Soyer's lawyer described as 'a clearly unjust, unlawful and politically motivated decision.' Also Friday, it was reported by state-run media that the CHP mayor of Manavgat, a Mediterranean resort city in Antalya province, and 34 others were detained over alleged corruption. CHP officials have faced waves of arrests this year that many consider aimed at neutralizing Turkey's main opposition party. The government insists prosecutors and the judiciary act independently but the arrest of Istanbul's Imamoglu led to the largest street protests Turkey has seen in more than a decade. Imamoglu was officially nominated as his party's presidential candidate following his imprisonment. Turkey's next election is due in 2028 but could come sooner. The crackdown comes a year after the CHP made significant gains in local elections. Adiyaman, which was severely affected by the 2023 earthquake, was among several cities previously considered strongholds for Erdogan to fall to the opposition.
Bloomberg
20 hours ago
- Politics
- Bloomberg
Turkey Detains Three Mayors in Widening Probe, Anadolu Reports
Turkish police detained the mayors of three cities and a number of other officials, the state-run Anadolu Agency reported, in an escalation of a probe into municipalities governed by the opposition Republican People's Party, or CHP. Zeydan Karalar, Muhittin Bocek and Abdurrahman Tutdere, the mayors of Adana, Antalya and Adiyaman respectively, were taken into custody on Saturday, Anadolu reported. The raids are an extension of earlier investigations into alleged graft within CHP-led administrations, the agency said.
