Analysis
Smart, independent reporting on Turkey's politics, economy and foreign affairs.
Several weeks have passed since the fund scandal broke, but no official responsible has been arrested or fired. One investigation permit has been granted for a former official, while the government is in a hurry to complete the legal steps that would put an end to the scandal.
Only two of the 53 formally arrested defendants in the Istanbul Municipality trial were released on the case's 75th hearing day, as relatives of those still held broke down in tears in the courtroom.
Erdal Beşikçioğlu, mayor of Etimesgut, a satellite town of the capital, has been arrested. The charge against him is much the same as those leveled at other CHP mayors: 'Forming a criminal organization for the purpose of corruption.'
After the detention of Cem Küçük, a prominent commentator on TV screens known for leaking information from judicial files, Tahir Sarıkaya, an anchor from the Beyaz TV channel owned by former Ankara Mayor Melih Gökçek and his son Osman Gökçek, was arrested for blackmailing and spreading false information.
Rapper Erol Can Güncü, known by his stage name UZ4Y, was detained on stage while performing in İzmir's Çeşme district and later formally arrested over his lyrics.
Turkey is shaken by the misdoings of an Anatolian rock singer Haluk Levent, who once topped the list of Turkey's 'most trusted celebrities' due to his leadership of the respected charity organization Ahbap.
A former top prosecutor, wanted for nearly a decade over his alleged ties to the Gülenist movement, which Turkey officially designated as a terrorist group, was arrested after police found him hiding in a secret compartment inside a wardrobe.
The brief respite after a court rejected a bid to unseat main opposition CHP Chair Özgür Özel and annul the party’s 2023 congress has now given way to a widening espionage probe. Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu and his campaign director Necati Özkan were rearrested on espionage charges, while a trustee was appointed to TELE1 television channel and its editor-in-chief, Merdan Yanardağ, was also taken into custody on Oct. 24.
The CHP has received a brief reprieve from ongoing legal turmoil as a lawsuit seeking to annul its 38th Ordinary Congress—held on November 4–5, 2023—was postponed to Oct. 24. The delay offers the party a short breathing space. Now it is preparing for a new extraordinary congress on Sept. 21 that might address some of the legal challenges it faces. But the crackdown against CHP municipalities is pressing on. In the latest development, Bayrampaşa Mayor Hasan Mutlu became the 12th CHP mayor arrested in Istanbul—and the 18th nationwide—since the crackdown began in October 2024.
Pro-government television commentator Rasim Ozan Kütahyalı was remanded in custody on May 18 as part of a wide illegal betting and money laundering investigation led by the Adana Chief Public Prosecutor's Office.
Gendarmes arrested CHP’s Bolu Mayor Tanju Özcan March 2, just as the party was bracing for the trial on corruption allegations concerning the Istanbul Municipality.
Ahmet Özer. A Kurd from Van. An academic. He was elected mayor of Istanbul’s Esenyurt district from the CHP in the 2024 local elections. He also holds the distinction of being the first CHP mayor to be arrested and replaced by a state-appointed trustee.