Turkey
IYI party leader Meral Aksener (centre) speaks to reporters outside her party office in Istanbul on March 31, 2023. She is flanked by Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu (left) and head of IYI Istanbul office Coskun Yildirim (right). Photo: Meral Aksener Twitter/screen grab
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Shots were fired by unidentified person or persons on the Istanbul offices of a Turkish opposition party on Friday, just weeks ahead of parliamentary elections.
The attack targeted the provincial office of the IYI (Good) party in Istanbul’s Merter district, one of the most densely populated areas of the city. No casualties or injuries were reported and Turkish police are investigating.
The party’s leader, Meral Aksener, talked to the press in front of the office after the shooting and launched a scathing attack on Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. “The man who would scare Meral Aksener is not born yet. I’m not afraid Mr. Recep,” she said, implying that the attack was an attempt to scare her and her party.
Aksener called on voters to change the “filthy, freaky and ugly system” in Turkey on May 14, election day, by voting for the Nation Alliance and presidential candidate Kemal Kilicdaroglu.
Kilicdaroglu, who is Aksener’s ally in the Nation Alliance, reacted to the shooting via Twitter, praising Aksener as “strong” and demanding the perpetrators be brought to justice immediately.
Turkey’s Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu condemned the attack calling it a “provocation.” He promised police would find the culprits as soon as possible.
Erdogan’s top advisor, Ibrahim Kalin, also condemned the attack on the IYI offices. He also hit back at Aksener and advised against leaping to conclusions that Erdogan was somehow involved.
Soylu announced on Friday evening that the Turkish police has arrested the perpetrator, hours after the attack.
Turkish presidential and parliamentary elections will take place on May 14, a month prior to their originally scheduled date of June 18. Aksener’s IYI party, along with five other opposition parties forming the Nation Alliance, is looking to unseat incumbent Erdogan. Their candidate for the presidency, Kilicdaroglu, is leader of the People’s Republican Party (CHP).
The Nation Alliance is the toughest challenge Erdogan has faced in 21 years.
By Azhi Rasul
UPDATED at 6:25 pm
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