The procedure to appoint an interim mayor of the Greater Istanbul Municipality to replace Ekrem Imamoglu, who was elected to a second term in this post in local elections last year, is scheduled to take place today, BTA reported.
On March 23, the Turkish Ministry of Interior temporarily suspended Imamoglu from the main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) after a court ordered his pre-trial detention on charges of corruption, bribery and abuse of office. Imamoglu's arrest sparked mass demonstrations in major Turkish cities, although the government has categorically denied that the prosecution of the Istanbul mayor is politically motivated.
Despite the arrest, Imamoglu was named the presidential candidate of the HDP in the March 23rd internal party elections, making him the main political rival of current President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
At the same time, an interim mayor of the Beylikduzu district of Istanbul will be appointed today to replace Mehmet Murat Çalık, who was arrested on similar charges.
„In accordance with the provisions of Article 45 of Law No. 5393 on Municipalities, it was deemed appropriate for the Istanbul Greater Municipality Municipal Council to hold a meeting in the municipality's meeting hall on Wednesday, March 26th, at 1:00 p.m. "The Beylikduzu municipal council meeting will be held on March 26 at 9 a.m.," the Istanbul governor's office said in a statement, which was reported by Turkish media.
It is expected that the interim mayors of both Istanbul and Beylikduzu will be from the opposition People's Party, because it has a majority in the municipal councils in both municipalities. After his arrest on March 19, Imamoglu transferred all his powers to Deputy Mayor Nuri Aslan, according to information from the municipality's press service.
According to sources close to the opposition HDP, two candidates for interim mayor of Istanbul were discussed - Sinem Dedetas, mayor of Üsküdar Municipality, and Hasan Akgun, mayor of Büyükçekmece Municipality, but the law on municipalities does not allow the election of district mayors to the mayoral post of the Greater Municipality.
According to the opposition TV channel Sözcü, the question of who to prefer to replace Imamoglu is decided by him himself. HRP leader Özgür Özel visited İmamoğlu in Silivri prison yesterday and discussed with him the issue of the interim mayor of Istanbul.
Ankara Mayor Mansur Yavas is scheduled to visit Ekrem İmamoğlu in custody today, the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality press service reported.
Opposition media also reported that İmamoğlu is strictly observing the Muslim fasts in prison during the holy month of Ramadan, which this year lasts until March 29.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio expressed concern to Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan about the arrests and protests in Turkey in recent days, the US State Department said, quoted by Reuters.
In a meeting with Fidan in Washington, Rubio "noted the progress in bilateral trade recently and encouraged the strengthening of the economic partnership going forward," a statement from the spokeswoman said. State Department Tammy Bruce.
The Secretary of State met today with his Turkish counterpart to discuss cooperation on key security and trade issues. Rubio asked for Turkey's support for peace in Ukraine and the South Caucasus. He highly appreciated Turkey's leading role in the Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS (the "Islamic State" group - ed. note) and reiterated the need for close cooperation in support of a stable, united and peaceful Syria, which is neither a base for international terrorism nor a path for destabilizing actions by Iran, the statement said.
This is the first official reaction by the US Secretary of State to the actions of the Turkish government in response to the protests. Until now, Washington has limited itself to calls for respect for human rights, notes Agence France-Presse. Demonstrators took to the streets of Turkey again yesterday in a protest sparked by the arrest of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's main rival. More than 1,400 people have been arrested since the start of the large-scale protests, AFP recalls.