Turkey's main opposition party leader doubled down on Friday (March 21) on his calls for people to take to the streets to protest against the detention of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, despite President Tayyip Erdogan's warning against demonstrations, Reuters reports.
Tens of thousands of people gathered outside the Istanbul municipality headquarters for a third night in a row to protest against Imamoglu's detention, which the opposition described as a "coup attempt."
Imamoglu, 54, was detained on Wednesday (March 19) facing charges including graft and aiding a terrorist group.
His Republican People's Party (CHP), the main opposition, condemned the move as politically motivated and urged supporters to demonstrate lawfully.
Clashes erupted in the Turkish city of Izmir on Friday night (March 21) where protesters demonstrated against the detention of Istanbul mayor and popular opposition figure Ekrem Imamoglu.
Police used water cannons to disperse crowds that tried to block a main road with bins and metal carts.
The last three days, since the detention on Wednesday (March 19), have seen the biggest shows of civil disobedience in more than a decade after the mayor's main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) urged people to demonstrate lawfully, calling the detention politically-motivated.
Turkey warned the calls for street protests were "illegal".
The warning from President Tayyip Erdogan's government comes ahead of a possible weekend ruling by a court to formally arrest the mayor, which could escalate both the protests and a sharp selloff in Turkish assets.
