Sawt Falasteen - More arrests as Turkey escalates crackdown over protests

Nine days after the arrest and subsequent jailing of Istanbul's popular opposition mayor, Ekrem Imamoglu, thousands of demonstrators protested on the streets on Thursday night, despite a growing sense of fear.

Overnight, police raided more homes, with Imamoglu saying his lawyer Mehmet Pehlivan had been "detained on fictitious grounds," in a post on X published via the mayor's legal team.

"As if the coup against democracy was not enough, they cannot tolerate the victims defending themselves. The evil that a handful of incompetent people are inflicting on our country is growing," he wrote.

"Release my lawyer immediately!"

It was not immediately clear on what grounds Pehlivan had been detained but opposition broadcaster Halk TV said it was linked to allegations of "laundering assets originating from a crime".

The Istanbul Bar Association meanwhile said 20 minors had been arrested between March 22-25 on charges of violating a ban on protests.

Of that number, 13 had been released but seven were still in custody, it said in a statement posted on X, indicating it was "closely following" the matter.

- Overseas criticism -

Turkey's repressive response to its worst bout of street unrest since 2013 has been sharply condemned by rights groups and drawn criticism from abroad.

In Washington, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio raised concerns over Ankara's handling of the protests, and French President Emmanuel Macron denounced its "systematic attacks" on opposition figures and freedom of assembly.

Police also detained two Turkish women journalists in dawn raids on their homes, the Turkish Journalists' Union (TGS) said on X.

"Another dawn raid. Two of our colleagues who were following the #Sarachane protests were detained," it said, referring to the name of the district where Istanbul City Hall is located.

"Let journalists do their job! Stop these unlawful detentions!" the union said.

- 'Arbitrary acts to silence journalists' -

The move came just hours after the authorities released the last of 11 journalists arrested in dawn raids on Monday for covering the protests, among them AFP photographer Yasin Akgul.

"The decision to throw me in jail came even though my identity as a journalist was known, and evidence provided to prove it," Akgul told AFP after he was freed on Thursday.

"I hope no other journalists will face a situation like this. But unfortunately, I fear that arbitrary acts to silence journalists and stop them from doing their job will continue in Turkey."

The Turkish authorities had on Wednesday detained BBC journalist Mark Lowen who had been covering the protests, holding him for 17 hours before deporting him on grounds he posed "a threat to public order", the broadcaster said.

In a statement late Thursday, Turkey's communications directorate said Lowen had been deported "due to a lack of accreditation".

In its first statement on the protests, Britain said it expected Ankara to ensure "the upholding of... the rule of law, including timely and transparent judicial processes", a foreign ministry spokesperson said.

Also Thursday, Turkey's broadcasting watchdog RTUK slapped a 10-day broadcast ban on the opposition TV channel Sozcu, pointing to alleged violations linked to incitement to "hatred and hostility".

- 'I'm scared' -

During Thursday night's protest, student demonstrators could be seen being rounded up by the police and taken away, an AFP correspondent said.

"We're here for our rights but I'm scared," a 21-year-old protester called Raftel told AFP, his words echoing the unease felt by many others as thousands of young demonstrators continue to flood Istanbul's streets.

"There are some very serious illegal things going on here, young people have been beaten for days," said Baturalp Akalin, 25, a rare protester with his face uncovered.

"We young people are on the streets of Istanbul to defend our country's democratic rights."

So far, more than 1,879 people have been detained since March 19, Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya said on Thursday.

Q.Jaber--SF-PST