Large crowds rally in Istanbul over jailing of city's mayor

By Ayhan Uyanik and Can Sezer

ISTANBUL (Reuters) - Tens of thousands of radical gathered successful Istanbul connected Saturday to protestation against the jailing of Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, President Tayyip Erdogan's main rival, sustaining the largest demonstrations Turkey has seen successful much than a decade.

Hundreds of thousands person heeded absorption calls and taken to the streets nationwide since Imamoglu was detained past week and past jailed pending proceedings connected graft charges. Protests person been mostly peaceful but astir 2,000 radical person been detained.

The main absorption Republican People's Party (CHP), different absorption parties, rights groups and Western powers person each said the lawsuit against Imamoglu is simply a politicised effort to destruct a imaginable electoral menace to Erdogan.

The authorities denies immoderate power implicit the judiciary and says the courts are independent.

Tens of thousands waving Turkish flags and banners poured into the sea-front rally grounds astatine Maltepe connected the Asian broadside of Istanbul for Saturday's "Freedom for Imamoglu" rally, organised by the CHP.

"If justness is silent, the radical volition speak," said 1 banner held aloft successful the crowd.

"The inclination of the economy, the inclination of justice, instrumentality - everything is getting worse. That is wherefore we are here. We accidental 'rights, instrumentality and justice' and we are seeking our rights," said 1 CHP protagonist who declined to springiness their name.

Last Sunday the CHP held a superior predetermination to endorse Imamoglu arsenic campaigner for the adjacent statesmanlike election. That is scheduled to beryllium held successful 2028, but the CHP is calling for an aboriginal election, arguing that the authorities has mislaid legitimacy.

Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya said this week that astir 1,900 radical had been detained since the protests began, adding that courts jailed 260 of them pending proceedings arsenic of Thursday.

Erdogan, who has dominated Turkish authorities for implicit 2 decades, has dismissed the nationwide protests arsenic a "show", warned of ineligible consequences, and called connected the CHP to halt "provoking" Turks.

Since Imamoglu's detention Turkish fiscal assets person plunged, prompting the cardinal slope to usage reserves to enactment the lira. The turmoil has sent shockwaves done the backstage sector.

The authorities has said the interaction would beryllium constricted and temporary. The slope said the economy's halfway dynamics were unharmed but it would instrumentality further measures if needed.

(Reporting by Ayhan Uyanik and Ben Makori; Writing by Ezgi Erkoyun; Editing by Daren Butler, Aidan Lewis)