The arrest of Mehmet Pehlivan, who represents jailed Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, adds to mounting concerns over Türkiye’s sweeping response to nationwide anti-government demonstrations.

The embattled mayor of Istanbul, Ekrem Imamoglu, has been chosen as the opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) candidate for the next presidential election, scheduled to take place in 2028.

The detention last week of Mr Imamoglu, the biggest political rival of president Recep Tayyip Erdogan, triggered the largest anti-government demonstrations in Turkey in more than a decade and led to mass arrests, as hundreds of thousands heeded opposition calls and took to the streets in mostly peaceful protests.