Istanbul mayor formally placed under arrest on graft charges – lawyer

Protesters clash with Turkish anti-riot police as they use tear gas and water cannons during a demonstration following the arrest of Istanbul’s mayor, in Ankara on March 22, 2025. Agence France-Presse

ISTANBUL — An Istanbul court on Sunday formally placed the city’s opposition mayor, Ekrem Imamoglu, under arrest in a graft probe, four days after his detention sparked Turkey’s worst unrest in over a decade, one of his lawyers told AFP.

The mayor is one of 100 people being investigated on corruption charges, and is also being probed in a second case on “terror-related” allegations, with the court due to rule on that in the coming hours.

READ: Vast crowds rally in Istanbul in support of arrested mayor