Turkey detains 47 members of Istanbul municipality in widening crackdown

27/4/2025 6:17

Turkish authorities on Saturday detained 47 more members of the Istanbul municipality over accusations of corruption, broadcaster NTV and other media reported, amid a widening legal crackdown against the opposition and the city's jailed mayor.



Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, who is also President Tayyip Erdogan's main political rival and leads him in some polls, was jailed in March pending trial over charges of corruption and aiding a terrorist group. The mayor has denied all charges and his arrest triggered mass protests, economic turmoil, and broad accusations of a politicised judiciary.



On Saturday, NTV said the municipality's secretary general, Imamoglu's chief of staff, the chairman and deputy chairman of the municipality's water and sewerage administration (ISKI), as well as a department head at ISKI were detained, among others.



Authorities also detained the wife of Imamoglu's aide, Murat Ongun, NTV said. It added that several other senior officials in the municipality and institutions tied to it were taken as part of the probe.