Turkey: new espionage charges against Istanbul mayor Imamoglu

Ankara (Turkey), 27 October (LaPresse/AP) – A Turkish prosecutor has brought new espionage charges against Istanbul mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, who is already in prison, intensifying judicial pressure on the opposition politician, considered one of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s main rivals. The new charges against Imamoglu stem from an investigation launched last week into alleged links between his political campaign and a businessman arrested in July for conducting intelligence activities on behalf of foreign governments. Imamoglu’s former campaign manager, Necati Özkan, and journalist Merdan Yanardag have also been charged. The state-run Anadolu news agency said Imamoglu, already in custody on corruption charges, is suspected, among other things, of transferring personal data of Istanbul residents as part of an attempt to obtain international funding for his campaign. Imamoglu dismissed the allegations as ‘nonsense’ in a statement posted on social media. ‘Even the claim that I set Rome on fire would be more credible than this nonsense,’ Imamoglu said. ‘Our fight against this mentality that has vowed to ruin the future of our nation has now become even stronger,’ he added.