Three Mayors Detained in Southern Turkey Amid Ongoing Government Investigation
TURKEY, JUL 5 – Three mayors from Turkey's main opposition Republican People's Party were detained in a probe linked to bribery and organized crime involving businessman Aziz Ohsan Aktaş, officials said.
- On July 5, 2025, Turkish authorities arrested three mayors from southern cities Adana, Adiyaman, and Antalya during early morning raids.
- These arrests came as part of a probe led by the Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office into accusations of organized crime, bribery, and bid-rigging involving CHP officials.
- The legal actions continue a broader crackdown on opposition CHP municipalities that began after Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu was jailed on corruption charges four months earlier.
- CHP Deputy Chairman Burhanettin Bulut criticized the arrests, stating that those exploiting the legal system to settle political scores prioritize maintaining their own authority over upholding justice.
- The arrests signal increasing pressure on Turkey's main opposition ahead of national elections scheduled for 2028 and highlight growing political tensions in former strongholds.
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Turkish police detained several mayors linked to the opposition last Saturday.
Erdoğan wants to turn the CHP, with 135 members of the largest opposition force in parliament, into a zombie party. The West is looking away.

Since the high-profile arrest of Istanbul's mayor in March, a dozen other mayors from Erdogan's main opposition party and hundreds of local officials have been arrested and imprisoned, including the mayors of three major cities on Saturday. According to Turkish politics expert Berk Esen, the president is trying to remove obstacles before the next election, which will take place by 2028.
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