Hello, and welcome to NewsHour from the BBC World Service.
Coming live from London, this is Owen Bennett Jones.
Well, as you've probably heard by now, the mayor of Istanbul, Ekrem Imomolu,
has not only been arrested but also formally charged with corruption,
something that's led to protests throughout Turkey.
Mr. Imomolu has been chosen as the opposition candidate to take on President Erdogan in 2028.
And.
And I think it's probably fair to conclude
that the thousands of people on the streets now defending him think the charge is politically motivated.
President Erdogan, meanwhile,
has said the demonstrations in support of the jailed mayor have turned into what he called a movement of violence.
He said Turkey's main opposition party was responsible for damaging property,
harming police officers, and would be held to account.
He was saying all this in a TV statement after a cabinet meeting.
Together with our nation,
we are following the events that began after a street call by the main opposition leader following a corruption operation centered in Istanbul,
which quickly turned into a movement of violence.
123 of our security personnel were injured in five days due to attacks by marginal organizations and city bandits.
Well, the BBC's Mark Loewen is in Istanbul.
What's happening?