In Turkey, the arrest of a prominent opposition figure will likely trigger protests and will, more broadly, further undermine the opposition's ability to challenge the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) in the next presidential election. On March 19, Turkish authorities detained Istanbul mayor Ekrem Imamolgu, a key figure in the country's main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP), on charges of corruption and aiding a terrorist group, linking him to the Kurdistan Workers' Party. CHP leader Ozgur Ozel called the arrest ''a coup attempt against our next president,'' as it came just days ahead of the party's March 23 presidential primary election in which Imamoglu was widely regarded as a frontrunner. Despite Istanbul authorities imposing a temporary ban on protests and closing some streets on March 19, over 100 CHP supporters still gathered near the city's police headquarters where Imamoglu was taken, and chanted slogans in support of the mayor...
