Turkish police on Wednesday arrested Istanbul mayor Ekrem Imamoğlu, a key rival of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, state-run media reported, as part of an investigation into alleged corruption and links with 'terrorist organizations'.

In its first statement about the arrest, the Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor's Office said that Ekrem Imamoğlu was taken into custody because of "alleged corruption". In a second statement, however, the prosecutor said that the reason was linked to the electoral pact, the "City Consensus" process, and alleged connections with 'terrorist organizations', 

The prosecutor's office based the detention decision on this claim, saying that Imamoğlu aided the KCK through the "City Consensus".

The statement claimed that some names in the Municipality of Istanbul and district municipalities were connected to the illegal organization, adding that other arrest and search warrants had been issued. 

CHP MP and Group Deputy Chairman Gökhan Günaydın shared a message on his social media account, saying: "As of now, 20 vehicles full of law enforcement have arrived at Ekrem Imamoğlu’s house."

Imamoğlu himself posted a video on Wednesday morning just before his arrest. The caption reads "A blow to the will of the nation".

In the message, the mayor of Istanbul said: "A handful of minds trying to usurp the will of our nation have used my beloved police officers as instruments of this evil and have gathered hundreds of police officers at the doors of the homes of 16 million of citizens. We are faced with great tyranny, but I want you to know that I will not give up. I love you all very much. I entrust myself to my nation. I will continue to fight against that person and his mind that uses this entire process as an apparatus."

Following the detention of Ekrem Imamoğlu, the Istanbul Governor's Office has decided to ban actions and events against possible protests. The Governor's Office announced that "all kinds of meetings, demonstrations and press releases have been banned for 4 days between March 19-23 in order to maintain public order throughout the city and to prevent any provocative actions that may occur."

Background

The terror-related investigation centers on the cooperation between the Republican People’s Party (CHP) and the pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Equality and Democracy (DEM) Party in last year’s municipal elections. As part of this alliance, DEM refrained from fielding candidates in certain districts or ran candidates on CHP lists, allowing them to secure municipal council seats.

Prosecutors launched an investigation into this cooperation last month, alleging that the collaboration was orchestrated by the PKK militant group. The probe has already led to the detention of municipal officials and council members from various Istanbul district municipalities.