A Turkish court has sentenced jailed Istanbul mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu to an additional year and eight months in prison for insulting and threatening a public official. The case relates to remarks made in January accusing Chief Public Prosecutor Akın Gürlek of launching politically motivated investigations against opposition figures.
İmamoğlu, a leading rival to President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, has been held west of Istanbul since 23 March on separate corruption charges. His arrest triggered the largest protests in Turkey in over a decade.
Though already in pre-trial detention, İmamoğlu was acquitted of one charge—publicly identifying Gürlek to make him a target—but plans to appeal Wednesday’s verdict.
Seen as the main challenger to Erdoğan’s rule, İmamoğlu was recently nominated as the presidential candidate for the opposition CHP. His supporters say the charges are politically driven, while the government maintains that the judiciary is independent and impartial.
