Turkey Detains 1,133 People In Massive Demonstration Protests Against Istanbul City Wal Seteru Erdogan
JAKARTA - Turkish authorities have detained 1,133 people across Turkey since the start of protests five days ago against the detention of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu.
The detention of Immoglu, President Tayyip Erdogan's main political competitor, last Wednesday sparked the largest street protests in Turkey in more than a decade. On Sunday, the court jailed him, pending trial, on corruption charges he denies.
Despite the ban on gathering on roads in many cities, largely peaceful anti-government demonstrations continued for five consecutive nights on Sunday, with hundreds of thousands of people taking part.
Reported by Reuters on Monday, March 24, Home Affairs Minister Ali Yerlikaya said 123 police officers were injured during the ongoing demonstration.
He stressed that the government would not allow "terror on the street".
Those detained included nine journalists covering overnight's protests in several cities, the Turkish Journalists Association said on Monday.
It was not immediately clear why the journalists were detained. An Agence France Presse (AFP) photographer staff was among the detained journalists, the union said in a post on X.
Immoglu's main opposition, the People's Party of the Republic (CHP) called for protests against the court's decision to arrest the mayor, which they refer to as a politicized and undemocratic act.
Immoglu denies the accusations he faces as "unimaginable accusations and slander" and also calls for national protests.
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Erdogan said last week the government would not accept "disturbations in public order". His government denies that the investigation is politically motivated and says the court is independent.
Omer Celik, spokesman for the ruling AK Party in Erdogan, said the CHP's call for protests was aimed at covering up opposition shortages.
"Democratic protests are the right (fundamental), but the language CHP uses is not a democratic protest language," said Celik.