The suspended and imprisoned mayor of Istanbul, Ekrem Imamoglu, the main rival of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, has denounced the arrest of his lawyer, Mehmet Pehlivan, demanding his immediate release.
"This time it is my lawyer Mehmet Pehlivan who has been arrested on completely fabricated charges," the opposition mayor of Turkey's economic capital wrote on X.
"As if this coup against democracy were not enough, they cannot tolerate their victims being protected," he added, calling for his release. "Release my lawyer immediately."
İmamoğlu, widely considered the main political rival of long-time President Erdogan, was initially detained on March 19 and then formally arrested by Turkish authorities on March 23 on corruption charges pending trial.
His arrest sparked massive protests across the country, with critics denouncing it as a politically motivated “coup.” Turkish authorities have arrested nearly 1,900 people since the demonstrations began following İmamoğlu’s initial detention. (A2 Televizion)
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