Once considered a reformer, he has more recently mostly monopolized power.The arrest and removal from office of Istanbul mayor Ekrem Imamoglu last week has caused consternation in Turkey. The European Commission on Monday called on Turkey to "uphold democratic values" and the German Foreign Ministry said that political contests "must not be

A Turkish court jailed Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu on Sunday pending trial, CNN affiliate CNN Turk reported, as mass protests have broken out across the country against his detention over allegations of corruption and terrorism ties.

A daylong shopping boycott was part of protests against the imprisonment of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's main rival, Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu.

Some have thought Mr Erdogan an aspiring dictator ever since the 1990s, when as an Islamist he campaigned against Turkey’s secularism. He once called democracy a tram you get off when you reach your stop.

Turkey’s president on Wednesday accused the political opposition of “sinking the economy” during the country’s largest protests in more than a decade over the arrest of Istanbul’s mayor, the biggest challenger to Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s 22-year rule.

Turkey, which allegedly a major role in the ousting of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, is now reportedly planning to capture the strategic Tiyas Air Base, the largest airbase in Syria. According to reports,