Riot police in Turkey fired tear gas and used water cannon to break up a rally called by ousted opposition leader Özgür Özel Tuesday, days after a court dismissed him from party leadership, Turkish Minute reported, citing Agence France-Presse.
The protest in the city of İzmir came two days after riot police battered their way into the main opposition Republican People’s Party’s (CHP) headquarters in the capital of Ankara in unprecedented scenes, firing tear gas and beating party members before throwing them out, Özel told Agence France-Presse.
The dramatic scenes followed a shock court ruling on Thursday that overturned a 2023 party congress that elected Özel.
It was the latest in a series of moves against the CHP, Turkey’s oldest political party, which scored a major political win over President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) in 2024 local elections and has been rising in the polls.
Since the ruling, the party has been in chaos.
Özel called the İzmir rally at midday (0900 GMT) as Turkey was poised to shut down for the four-day Eid al-Adha holiday, which begins on Wednesday.
Ahead of the rally, the governor’s office ordered the closure of the city’s central Cumhuriyet Square, deploying a large number of riot police with water cannon trucks who tried to break up the flag-waving crowd, Turkish media reported.
“Chairman Özgür, free Turkey!” they shouted in scenes broadcast live on TV. The slogan was a play on Özel’s first name, Özgür, which means “free” in Turkish.
‘Attempt to divide’
Özel, who addressed a large crowd waving Turkish flags at a nearby square, called for a party congress after the four-day break in an appeal to Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, who was reinstated by the court as the CHP’s leader.
“We should hold a party congress immediately,” he said.
“This is a matter between the people and Tayyip Erdoğan… The issue is about stopping a party that is on the march toward ultimate power.”
Özel and his leadership were ousted following a court case concerning allegations of vote-buying at the 2023 party congress.
The case was thrown out in October for lack of substance, but the ruling was overturned on appeal.
The assault on the CHP began in earnest with the jailing of İstanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu, Erdoğan’s main political rival and the party’s presidential candidate, on charges widely seen as political.
“Erdoğan has lost all restraint,” Özel told AFP late Sunday.
“Just as he imprisoned the presidential candidate who could defeat him, he is now effectively shutting down the political party that could defeat him,” he said.
“Turkey has ceased to be a modern democratic republic and has turned into a one‑man regime.”
