1,133 held for protesting against Istanbul mayor's detention

Turkish security forces arrested 1,133 suspects over the past five days since the start of protests against the detention of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, the country's Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya said Monday, reported Xinhua.

A total of 123 police officers have been injured during protests, Yerlikaya said on the social media platform X.

Yerlikaya emphasized that, according to Article 34 of the Constitution, "everyone has the right to organize unarmed and unaggressive meetings and demonstrations without prior permission," but noted that this right is "restricted by law for the purposes of national security, public order, crime prevention, protection of public health and morality, or the rights and freedoms of others."

The recent protests have gone beyond peaceful demonstrations, with certain groups abusing the right and attempting to exploit the situation to disrupt public order and attack law enforcement forces, said the minister.

"We invite our citizens to be careful against such provocations and to act with common sense," he added.

Tens of thousands of Turks have taken to the streets since March 19 after Imamoglu was detained on charges of graft and aiding a terrorist group. Imamoglu, from the main opposition Republican People's Party, is considered President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's main rival in the next presidential elections.