Turkish authorities on Sunday ordered the evacuation of the headquarters of the main opposition party CHP in Ankara. According to Spiegel, the move is meant to enforce a court ruling that removed CHP leader Özgür Özel and temporarily reinstated his predecessor Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu as chairman.
Since his removal on Thursday, Özel had barricaded himself inside the headquarters with lawmakers, refusing to leave the building. Thousands of supporters gathered outside to show solidarity. Protests against the decision also took place in Istanbul. Special operations police set up barricades around the CHP headquarters.
A court in Ankara declared the 2023 party congress, at which Özel was elected chairman, invalid due to alleged irregularities. In his place, the court appointed 77-year-old Kılıçdaroğlu, who had led the CHP for more than a decade. He lost to Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in the 2023 presidential election and later to Özel in the contest for party leadership.
The ruling is seen as a severe blow to Erdoğan’s political opponents. Observers view the decision as politically motivated, while the government stresses the independence of the judiciary. The ruling is not yet final. The removal puts the entire Turkish opposition under massive pressure.
Source: www.spiegel.de
