A Turkish court has sentenced the detained Istanbul mayor, Ekrem Imamoglu, a key rival of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, to 1 year and 8 months in prison, the Associated Press reports, quoted by News.bg.
Imamoglu was found guilty on charges of insulting and threatening Istanbul Chief Prosecutor Akin Gurlek. The verdict comes in a series of court cases against the mayor, who has been detained since March 23 in a prison west of the city. He is expected to appeal the decision.
The trial is related to comments made on January 20 in which Imamoglu criticized the chief prosecutor, accusing him of politically motivated attacks on opposition figures. The court acquitted him of the charge of publicly naming the prosecutor with the aim of targeting him, but convicted him of insulting and threatening.
The Republican People's Party (CHP) mayor, who won the 2019 mayoral election in Istanbul, is considered one of the most serious challengers to Erdogan's long-standing rule. He denies all charges and has described the trial as "punishment, not justice," insisting that the judiciary is operating under political pressure.
His arrest sparked the biggest street protests in Turkey in a decade. Dozens of employees from CHP-controlled municipalities were also arrested on charges of rigging public procurement and bribery.
Despite his imprisonment, İmamoğlu was officially nominated as the CHP's presidential candidate. Although the next elections are scheduled for 2028, the country has not ruled out the possibility of an early vote.
For its part, Erdogan's government denies political interference, saying that the courts operate independently and impartially.