Supporters of the mayor, Ekrem Imamoglu, said that corruption charges against him were a ploy to hobble the main political rival of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Only last week, its government was still what political scientists call a competitive authoritarian regime: although President Recep Tayyip Erdogan wields unchecked executive powers and de facto control over the courts and most of the media,

Turkish authorities have detained Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, a key rival to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, as part of corruption and terror investigations, according to state broadcaster TRT, citing the Istanbul Prosecutor’s Office.