Turkish riot police forced their way into the headquarters of the country’s main opposition party on Sunday, days after a court dismissed its leadership. Clouds of tear gas billowed outside the Republican People’s Party (CHP) building in Ankara, where party members had blocked the entrances with a makeshift barricade.
Footage from the scene showed those inside shouting and throwing objects towards the entrance, and police being sprayed with hoses.
Party leader Özgür Özel had vowed to defy an appeal court decision on Thursday which declared his election null and void, in a move further cementing President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s grip on power.
The court decided that Özel should be replaced by Kemal Kilicdaroğlu, a 77-year-old party veteran who was defeated by Erdoğan in the 2023 presidential election.
Turkish media reported that Kilicdaroğlu’s representatives had requested the police carry out “necessary procedures” to hand over the headquarters to the new leadership, claiming they had so far been barred entry.
The city’s governor then instructed the police to “implement the court decision”, according to a statement from his office. “We are under attack,” Özel said in a video message shared on X as the security forces sought entry to the building, where clashes were also reported between his supporters and those of Kilicdaroğlu.
Özel later emerged from the premises, before setting off towards the Turkish assembly surrounded by supporters.
“They tried to uproot and throw us out,” he told crowds gathered outside.
He said the party would “from now be on the streets or in the squares, marching towards power”.
Human Rights Watch warned on Saturday that Erdoğan’s government was undermining Turkish democracy with “abusive tactics” against the CHP.
Erdoğan has led Turkey since 2003, as prime minister and then as president, and Özel has accused his AK party of pursuing a strategy to “eliminate its rivals”.
The 72-year-old leader can only run for president again if he calls early elections before 2028 or changes the constitution.
Justice Minister Akin Gürlek said earlier this week that the appeal court ruling “reinforces our citizens’ trust in democracy”.
The decision overturned a 2025 ruling by a lower court that threw out allegations of vote buying during the CHP primary in which Özel became opposition leader.
The ruling also means the party’s entire executive is replaced, and it is thought its decisions are no longer recognised.
By BBC News
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