Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, a strong challenger to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in next year's elections, was jailed and banned from politics by a Turkish court on Wednesday.
Although both penalties are yet to be confirmed by an appeals court, Imamoglu was sentenced to two years and seven months in prison along with the political ban for insulting public officials in a speech he made after he won Istanbul's municipal election in 2019.
Riot police were stationed outside the court on the Asian side of the city of 17 million people and he continued to work as usual, dismissing the court proceedings.
At his municipal headquarters across the Bosphorus on the European side of Istanbul, he told thousands of supporters that the verdict marked a "profound unlawfulness" that "proved that there is no justice in today's Turkey".
Voters would respond in presidential and parliamentary elections that are due by next June, Mr Imamoglu said.
The vote could mark the biggest political challenge yet for Mr Erdogan.
He is seeking to extend his rule into a third decade in the face of a collapsing currency and rampant inflation, which have driven the cost of living for Turks ever higher.
A six-party opposition alliance has yet to agree on their presidential candidate, and Mr Imamoglu has been mooted as a possible leading challenger to run against Mr Erdogan.
Kemal Kilicdaroglu, chairman of Mr Imamoglu's opposition Republican People's Party (CHP), said he was cutting short a visit to Germany and returning to Turkey in response to what he called a "grave violation of the law and justice".
The US State Department is "deeply troubled and disappointed" by the sentence, its deputy spokesman Vedant Patel said.
"This unjust sentence is inconsistent with respect for human rights, with respect to fundamental freedoms and rule of law," Mr Patel said.
The European Parliament rapporteur on Turkey, Nacho Sanchez Amor, expressed disbelief at the "inconceivable" verdict.
"Justice in Turkey is in a calamitous state, grossly used for political purposes," Mr Amor tweeted. "Very sad day."
Mr Imamoglu was tried over a speech after Istanbul elections when he said those who annulled the initial vote, in which he narrowly defeated a candidate from Mr Erdogan's AKP, were "fools".
Mr Imamoglu says that remark was a response to Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu for using the same language against him.
After the initial results were annulled, he won the rerun vote comfortably, ending the 25-year rule in Turkey's largest city by the AKP and its Islamist predecessors.
The outcome of next year's elections is considered to be hinging on the ability of the CHP and others in opposition to join forces around a single candidate to challenge Mr Erdogan and the AKP, which has governed Turkey since 2002.
Mr Erdogan, who was Istanbul mayor before rising to dominate Turkish national politics, was briefly jailed in 1999 for reciting a poem that a court ruled was an incitement to religious hatred.
Selahattin Demirtas, the jailed former leader of the pro-Kurdish Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP), tweeted that Mr Imamoglu should be incarcerated in the same prison where Mr Erdogan was held so that he could ultimately follow his path to the presidency.
A jail sentence or political ban on Mr Imamoglu would need to be upheld in appeals courts, potentially extending an outcome to the case beyond the elections date.
Critics say Turkish courts bend to Mr Erdogan's will. The government says the judiciary is independent.
"The ruling will be final only after the higher court decides whether to uphold the ruling or not," Timucin Koprulu, professor of criminal law at Atilim University in Ankara, told Reuters after the ruling.
"Under these circumstances, it would be wrong to say that the political ban is in place."
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre V8 twin-turbocharged and three electric motors
Power: Combined output 920hp
Torque: 730Nm at 4,000-7,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed dual-clutch automatic
Fuel consumption: 11.2L/100km
On sale: Now, deliveries expected later in 2025
Price: expected to start at Dh1,432,000
Specs
Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric
Range: Up to 610km
Power: 905hp
Torque: 985Nm
Price: From Dh439,000
Available: Now
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre flat-six
Torque: 450Nm at 6,100rpm
Transmission: 7-speed PDK auto or 6-speed manual
Fuel economy, combined: 13.8L/100km
On sale: Available to order now
Suggested picnic spots
Abu Dhabi
Umm Al Emarat Park
Yas Gateway Park
Delma Park
Al Bateen beach
Saadiyaat beach
The Corniche
Zayed Sports City
Dubai
Kite Beach
Zabeel Park
Al Nahda Pond Park
Mushrif Park
Safa Park
Al Mamzar Beach Park
Al Qudrah Lakes
RESULT
Bayern Munich 5 Eintrracht Frankfurt 2
Bayern: Goretzka (17'), Müller (41'), Lewandowski (46'), Davies (61'), Hinteregger (74' og)
Frankfurt: Hinteregger (52', 55')
The burning issue
The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE.
Read part four: an affection for classic cars lives on
Read part three: the age of the electric vehicle begins
Read part one: how cars came to the UAE
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Company%20Profile
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECompany%20name%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ENamara%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EJune%202022%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounder%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EMohammed%20Alnamara%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EDubai%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ESector%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EMicrofinance%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ECurrent%20number%20of%20staff%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E16%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestment%20stage%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ESeries%20A%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EFamily%20offices%0D%3Cbr%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Dhadak 2
Director: Shazia Iqbal
Starring: Siddhant Chaturvedi, Triptii Dimri
Rating: 1/5
More from UAE Human Development Report:
MATCH SCHEDULE
Uefa Champions League semi-final, first leg
Tuesday, April 24 (10.45pm)
Liverpool v Roma
Wednesday, April 25
Bayern Munich v Real Madrid (10.45pm)
Europa League semi-final, first leg
Thursday, April 26
Arsenal v Atletico Madrid (11.05pm)
Marseille v Salzburg (11.05pm)
Conflict, drought, famine
Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.
Band Aid
Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.
Tree of Hell
Starring: Raed Zeno, Hadi Awada, Dr Mohammad Abdalla
Director: Raed Zeno
Rating: 4/5
Key findings of Jenkins report
- Founder of the Muslim Brotherhood, Hassan al Banna, "accepted the political utility of violence"
- Views of key Muslim Brotherhood ideologue, Sayyid Qutb, have “consistently been understood” as permitting “the use of extreme violence in the pursuit of the perfect Islamic society” and “never been institutionally disowned” by the movement.
- Muslim Brotherhood at all levels has repeatedly defended Hamas attacks against Israel, including the use of suicide bombers and the killing of civilians.
- Laying out the report in the House of Commons, David Cameron told MPs: "The main findings of the review support the conclusion that membership of, association with, or influence by the Muslim Brotherhood should be considered as a possible indicator of extremism."
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
MATCH INFO
Norwich City 0 Southampton 3 (Ings 49', Armstrong 54', Redmond 79')
AI traffic lights to ease congestion at seven points to Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Street
The seven points are:
Shakhbout bin Sultan Street
Dhafeer Street
Hadbat Al Ghubainah Street (outbound)
Salama bint Butti Street
Al Dhafra Street
Rabdan Street
Umm Yifina Street exit (inbound)
Predictions
Predicted winners for final round of games before play-offs:
- Friday: Delhi v Chennai - Chennai
- Saturday: Rajasthan v Bangalore - Bangalore
- Saturday: Hyderabad v Kolkata - Hyderabad
- Sunday: Delhi v Mumbai - Mumbai
- Sunday - Chennai v Punjab - Chennai
Final top-four (who will make play-offs): Chennai, Hyderabad, Mumbai and Bangalore
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
More from Neighbourhood Watch
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
AS IT STANDS IN POOL A
1. Japan - Played 3, Won 3, Points 14
2. Ireland - Played 3, Won 2, Lost 1, Points 11
3. Scotland - Played 2, Won 1, Lost 1, Points 5
Remaining fixtures
Scotland v Russia – Wednesday, 11.15am
Ireland v Samoa – Saturday, 2.45pm
Japan v Scotland – Sunday, 2.45pm
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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