Turkish Prosecution Probes Main Erdogan Rivals Over Remarks

Turkish authorities have opened an investigation into Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, one of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s biggest political rivals. In a separate probe, nationalist opposition leader Umit Ozdag, a vocal Erdogan critic, was detained on charges of insulting the president, further intensifying the legal pressure on opposition figures in Turkey.

The public prosecutor’s office in Istanbul accused Imamoglu of making “threatening” statements against Istanbul Chief Prosecutor Akin Gurlek and his family, state-run Anadolu agency said. Gurlek was until recently the deputy justice minister in Erdogan’s government.