3 arrested in İzmir municipality raid

Three people were arrested after being detained and interrogated in the police operations against İzmir Metropolitan Municipality and its affiliated companies.

After the interrogations at the public prosecutor’s office, five suspects were forwarded to the court with arrest demands. Among them, three people who were only identified by their initials, Culture Department Manager A.C.Y., General Manager of İzenerji A.S.S. and a partner in Company S., S.S., were arrested.

The civil servants’ union Tüm Bel-Sen and the workers’ union Belediye-İş jointly reacted with a demonstration to protest the operation against İzmir Metropolitan Municipality.

Addressing to the municipality staff, İzmir Mayor Aziz Kocaoğlu claimed the aim was to block the municipality to stop the offices, bureaucrats and workers from working. Meanwhile, speaking at the Justice and Development Party (AKP) provincial heads meeting, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan commented on İzmir detentions as well and responded to Republican People’s Party (CHP) leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, who criticized the operation. “There is a police operation carried out. Justice will do what it needs to do,” Erdoğan said. “This was being done against me, why shouldn’t it be done to you [Kılıçdaroğlu]?” he said.