3 mayors arrested in southern Turkey as part of crackdown on opposition
Associated PressJUL 8
Turkey Arrests Three Opposition Mayors in Corruption Probe
Above: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan at a NATO Summit press conference in The Hague, Netherlands, on June 25, 2025. Image copyright: Klaudia Radecka/NurPhoto/Getty Images
The Spin
Pro-government narrative
The allegations made by the CHP against the judiciary are total fabrications. In stark contrast to their lies, the investigations and arrests were in full accordance with the requirements of the law. The CHP's attacks on the president and the judiciary, therefore, are self-interested and shameless deflections that actively undermine law and order.
Opposition narrative
The arrests on Saturday were a cynical ploy by a morally bankrupt regime. Terrified of the CHP's growing popularity among voters, who have long been dissatisfied with AK Party rule, Erdoğan is turning to persecuting his opponents to silence dissent. The CHP, however, will not kowtow to this assault on democracy and will defend the will of the people.