İmamoğlu ousted: Turkiye names new Istanbul mayor

Shafaq News/ Istanbul’s municipal council elected Nuri Aslan as interim mayor on Wednesday, Turkish media reported.

Nuri Aslan, who had been serving as interim mayor since March 20 with a handwritten authorization from Ekrem İmamoğlu, was formally voted as acting mayor after winning 177 of 314 votes in a session led by Istanbul’s opposition-controlled municipal council.

Turkiye’s Interior Ministry had earlier suspended İmamoğlu and ordered his arrest on multiple charges, including corruption, bribery, unlawful data collection, bid rigging, and forming a criminal organization—prompting the vote.

İmamoğlu's arrest triggered nationwide protests, with more than 1,400 demonstrators detained over the past week, Turkish sources said. Despite the sweeping arrests and frequent clashes with police, anti-government protesters vowed to keep rallying. "We will not back down," some chanted, denouncing the arrest as "politically motivated."

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan described the demonstrations as "street terrorism" and accused opposition figures of "inciting unrest." He warned that those who violate the law will be held accountable and vowed to end what he called "attacks on the country's democratic order."