The bar associations of Paris and Brussels have called on Turkey to immediately release Mehmet Pehlivan, the lawyer for jailed İstanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu, saying he is being targeted simply for doing his job.
The Brussels Bar Association said Pehlivan has been held in isolation “23 hours a day in a 5-square-meter cell without human contact” and urged authorities to allow him to reunite with his family.
The Paris Bar Association expressed solidarity with Pehlivan as well as with all lawyers and human rights defenders in Turkey who face persecution for their commitment to justice. It also called on Turkey to respect its obligations under the European Convention on Human Rights.
Pehlivan represents İmamoğlu, a senior member of the Republican People’s Party (CHP) and their presidential candidate. Pehlivan was arrested on June 19 on charges of membership in a criminal organization. He had previously been questioned in connection with a sweeping corruption probe that led to İmamoğlu’s arrest in March. Prosecutors claim Pehlivan’s legal work amounted to aiding a so-called “crime ring,” allegations he has denied.
Pehlivan’s arrest marks a deepening of what rights groups call a politically motivated crackdown on the CHP.
İmamoğlu was detained on March 19 and later arrested on corruption charges. His arrest, widely seen as targeting the biggest political rival to longtime President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in the 2028 presidential election, sparked Turkey’s worst protests in a decade.
Since late 2024, more than 500 people linked to the party or the İstanbul Municipality have been detained or arrested on a range of charges, from terrorism to bid rigging, in what critics say is a systematic crackdown.
