Thousands protest for second night over Istanbul mayor's arrest

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00:00Tensions were high on Wednesday between police and protesters in Istanbul.

00:05This after the arrest of City Mayor Ikram Imamoglu on Wednesday, just days before he

00:10was set to be announced candidate for the presidency.

00:15Ikram Imamoglu will be our president in the future.

00:19Right now he is mayor, but he is our future president.

00:23I came here from Tekirdag to support him.

00:26We will stand behind him until the end.

00:30He has dubbed his arrest a quote, coup d'etat against the will of the nation, and from his

00:36detention issued a call to the judiciary.

00:39I am shouting out to the tens of thousands of honourable moral prosecutors and judges

00:44of the great Turkish judiciary who are passionate about serving the nation.

00:48You must stand up and take precautions against this handful of colleagues who are ruining

00:53the Turkish judiciary, disgracing us to the whole world and destroying our reputation.

00:59Ikram Imamoglu stands accused of corruption and aiding the Kurdish Workers' Party or PKK.

01:06But his allies, now occupying the Istanbul mayoral office, view the charges as a stunt

01:11to block his 2028 presidential bid.

01:16We think we will win the presidency with Imamoglu, but if his candidacy is blocked, we think

01:22that this will only increase support because the Turkish people will not allow their ballot

01:26box rights to be debated.

01:31He has been a thorn in President Erdogan's side since 2019 when he swept a victory in

01:36the Istanbul mayoral race and upset in an AKP stronghold.

01:41The arrest came just after Imamoglu's alma mater revoked his university degree, also

01:46rendering him ineligible for the presidency.

01:49Critics are adamant that the university acted on pressure from the state.

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