Lawyers across Turkey gathered at the İstanbul Courthouse on Monday to protest the arrest of Mehmet Pehlivan, lawyer for jailed İstanbul mayor and presidential candidate Ekrem İmamoğlu, but were blocked by police as they attempted to march to the city’s bar association headquarters in the central Taksim neighborhood, the Anka news agency reported.
Hundreds of lawyers rallied inside the courthouse in Çağlayan, chanting “Rights, law, justice” in defiance of a recent court decision to jail Pehlivan last week.
Pehlivan was arrested last Thursday by İstanbul’s 9th Criminal Court of Peace on charges of membership in a criminal organization. He had previously been questioned in connection with a sweeping corruption probe that led to İmamoğlu’s arrest in March. Prosecutors claim Pehlivan’s legal work amounted to aiding a so-called “crime ring,” allegations he has denied.
Lawyers had planned to march from the courthouse in the Çağlayan to the İstanbul Bar Association office in Taksim. However, police forces erected barricades and refused to allow the group to proceed.
Baroların Çağlayan Adliyesi'ndeki "Savunmayı Savunmak" eylemine polis engeli
Avukatlar, adliyeden İstanbul Barosu'na yürümek istedi, önlerine polis barikatı çekildi. pic.twitter.com/cHW5ooBXya
— Kısa Dalga (@kisadalgamedya) June 23, 2025
During a tense exchange with officers, Erinç Sağkan, president of the Union of Turkish Bar Associations (TBB), urged the police to let the peaceful march continue.
In response to the blockade, lawyers chanted slogans such as “Governor Davut Gül, resign!” in reference to İstanbul Governor Gül and “Article 34: Marching is a constitutional right,” referencing the article of the Turkish Constitution that protects the right to peaceful assembly.
Despite their insistence, the march was ultimately stopped at the police barricade, where lawyers continued their protest, demanding the barriers be lifted.
The protest was organized under the slogan “Defending the defense,” a phrase used to stress the importance of protecting legal representation.
Following the courthouse demonstration, İstanbul Bar Association President İbrahim Kaboğlu delivered a statement on behalf of bar associations from several provinces. Dozens of lawyers held placards reading “Freedom for Lawyer Mehmet Pehlivan” as they chanted slogans against the arrest.
Sağkan publicly objected to Pehlivan’s arrest, saying that the legal community would challenge the decision. As Sağkan concluded his speech, black balloons symbolizing injustice were released into the sky.
Pehlivan’s arrest marks a deepening of what rights groups call a politically motivated crackdown following İmamoğlu’s detention in March. The opposition mayor, widely viewed as President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s top challenger in the 2028 presidential election, was jailed on corruption charges. His arrest triggered a wider investigation that has so far implicated dozens of opposition figures and city officials.
Pehlivan was previously detained in March and released under judicial supervision amid separate accusations of money laundering. He denied the accusations, saying he was being targeted for representing the jailed mayor. He accused prosecutors of conducting investigations based on erroneous and false reports as well as witness statements rooted in gossip.