Turkish authorities have detained 343 people during overnight protests in several cities against the detention of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, the Interior Ministry said on Saturday.
The ministry stated in a release that protests occurred in over a dozen cities, including Istanbul, Turkey’s largest city, and the capital, Ankara.
Since Wednesday, when Imamoglu was arrested on allegations including corruption and supporting a terrorist organization, tens of thousands of Turks have participated in largely peaceful protests. He is the primary political opponent of President Tayyip Erdogan and currently surpasses him in several opinion surveys.
The mayor’s Republican People’s Party (CHP), the primary opposition, denounced the action as driven by political motives and called on its supporters to protest legally.
