President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has condemned his pro-religious protests after the arrest of a major opposition figure.
In a Friday speech, Erdogan said his government would not “health” to “electricity” or “rule terrorism” before further protests. “We will not accept the interruption of the public command.
On Wednesday, police arrested Istanbul mayor on charges of corruption and aiding terrorist groups, days before being elected presidential candidate.
Protesters took to the streets across Turkey for the third day on Friday, despite the ban on demonstrations. The US Interior Secretary said 53 people were arrested on Thursday.
Imamğlu, a secular Republican People’s Party (CHP), is seen as one of the strongest political rivals of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
His arrest just days before he is expected to be announced as a candidate for the 2028 presidential election.
He was one of more than 100 people—including politicians, journalists and other businessmen – who were arrested as part of the investigation.
Thousands of people gathered in Istanbul on Friday. The riot police are said to have fired rubber bullets and pepper gas, while they collided with hundreds of demonstrators. Other clashes were reported in Izmir.
CHP leader Özgür Özel, at 20:30 local time (17:30 GMT) had called for his third night protests outside the Istanbul municipality hall and said the president was afraid of the protests.
He also called on people other parts of Turkey to act peacefully at the same time, wherever they are from the country.
“Break these barriers without harming the police to go to the streets and squares,” he said.
Authorities tried to drown street demonstrations by a four-day ban on all Istanbul meetings, which was announced immediately after the arrests announced on Wednesday.
Since then, they have extended the decree to Ankara and the western city of Izmir as protests have spread and tens of thousands of people are gathering across Turkey.
Before Friday’s demonstrations, the pro-God governor ordered the closure of the Galata and Ataturk bridges, both crossing the Golden Golden Lake to where the municipal hall is located.
Interior Minister Ali Yerikaya has also criticized the demonstrations and called the opposition “irresponsible.
He said 54 others had been arrested for violating a law on “inciting people to hatred and hostility” by publishing online.
Yerlikaya said 16 police officers were injured in the demonstrations.
The arrests of Imamus and others have been suppressing the country in recent months and targeting politicians, journalists and opposition figures in the industry industry.
Opposition figures say the arrests are politically motivated. But the Justice Ministry has criticized those who link Erdogan to the reverses, and insist on their judicial independence.
Imamuglu won last year as mayor of Istanbul in a second term in the United States, when the CHP swept local elections there and Ankara.
It was the first time Erdogan came to power when his party lost the ballot box across the country.
The elections were also a personal blow to the president, in which he grew up and became mayor of Istanbul from his rise to power.
Erdogan has held his post over the past 22 years, as prime minister and president. Due to the boundaries of the presidency, he cannot run for the post in 2028, unless the constitution does not change.
The election of the CHP presidential candidates, which will vote 1.5 million members, and Imamuğlu is the only one to run for himself, is scheduled to be held on Sunday.
The party has also called on citizens to vote in a symbolic election, planning to set up ballot boxes in districts across Turkey to show their support for the arrested mayor.