Opposition Party Arrests Continue as Corruption Probe Widens in Türkiye

Aziz İhsan Aktaş, who was detained in the bribery operation against CHP municipalities (AA).

Turkish authorities recently arrested three prominent political figures from the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) in a recent escalation. On July 5, in five different operations, Adana Metropolitan Mayor Zeydan Karalar, Antalya Metropolitan Mayor Muhittin Böcek, and Adıyaman Mayor Abdurrahman Tutdere were taken into custody. Karalar and Tutdere face charges of “extortion through coercion” (icbar suretiyle irtikap), while Böcek is accused of accepting bribes in return for municipal contracts. All three mayors have been suspended from their chairs as the investigation continues.

During searches of homes and municipal buildings, investigators say they uncovered evidence of money transfers, gift exchanges, and favorable contract amendments. Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya defended the operation as “fully legal and necessary to uphold public trust,” warning that “no public official is above scrutiny.” The operation was denounced by CHP chairman Özgür Özel as “politically motivated” and “an outright disgrace” as he proclaimed that dismantling a democratically elected opposition is government weaponizing the judiciary. Protests, mainly in the cities of arrested mayors, are continuing to this day by the protesters accusing AKP of ruling out its rivals.

Critics point to the puzzling fact that Aziz İhsan Aktaş, a businessman at the center of the probe, secured roughly 80 percent of his public contracts under AKP-led administrations, yet his admitted bribery network allegedly only involved CHP municipalities. According to court documents, Aktaş testified that he gifted modest campaign cars to Avcılar and Gaziosmanpaşa (both CHP-run) but refrained from similar dealings with AKP municipalities, even though he was known to give high-end vehicles to an AKP mayor in Isparta. To counter claims of bias, the Interior Ministry published data showing that corruption investigations span 59 AKP, 58 CHP, 21 MHP, 7 İYİ Parti, and 10 HDP municipalities. However, the harshest measures—detentions, suspensions, and arrests—have applied almost exclusively to CHP mayors. By contrast, AKP mayors convicted of tender fraud, such as Uludere’s Sait Ürek and Hilal’s Cevher Benek, received fines without losing their posts or facing detention. They even posed publicly alongside Minister Süleyman Soylu after conviction, underscoring the sense that enforcement is uneven.

This latest wave follows a series of high-profile detentions dating back to late 2024. In March, Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu—once viewed as the CHP’s frontrunner for the 2028 presidential ticket—was arrested on corruption and terror-related charges, sparking the largest street demonstrations in Türkiye in over a decade. Since then, at least 14 CHP mayors have been removed or arrested, alongside dozens of municipal executives and council members. International watchdogs and foreign governments have expressed concern over what they describe as the “weaponization of the judiciary” to stifle political dissent. In Brussels, an EU spokesperson urged Ankara to ensure “equal treatment under the law,” while U.S. State Department officials monitored developments closely ahead of upcoming parliamentary elections. The detained mayors await formal indictments, with trial dates expected in the coming months.

As the legal proceedings unfold, the opposition is mobilizing to challenge what it sees as an unstability in democratic norms and a test of Türkiye’s judiciary at a pivotal moment in its political history. Whether this campaign will ultimately strengthen accountability or drive further polarization remains to be seen. But for now, the detentions of Karalar, Böcek, and Tutdere are in the pages of a struggling Türkiye.