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Turkey Blocks Jailed Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu's X Account with Nearly 10 Million Followers Citing National Security; Lawyer Arrested

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Updated May 10, 2025, 11:30 PM

Turkish authorities have blocked the X (formerly Twitter) account of Ekrem İmamoğlu, the jailed mayor of Istanbul and a main rival of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. İmamoğlu's account, which has nearly 10 million followers, was initially blocked within Turkey following a legal demand citing national security and public order concerns. Subsequently, access to his international X account was also restricted. The platform confirmed the account blocking in Turkey.

In addition, Burak Saldıroğlu, a lawyer who distributed printed posts from İmamoğlu's blocked account, was arrested on charges including insulting the president. Meanwhile, Davut Bildik, an Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality (İBB) employee accused of removing and handing over hard drives from security cameras at İmamoğlu's residence, was also detained. The blocking of İmamoğlu's social media presence and the arrests have raised constitutional concerns among opposition figures. Supporters of İmamoğlu have also faced repercussions, including the suspension of a mayor's X account who changed their profile picture in solidarity with İmamoğlu. A new X account titled "Presidential Candidate Office" was created for İmamoğlu amid these developments.

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#Twitter #Istanbul #Recep Tayyip Erdoğan #Turkey #Burak Saldıroğlu #Davut Bildik #Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality #Presidential Candidate Office

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Sources

birgun.net(5)reclaimthenet.org(2)al-monitor.com dokuz8haber.net

Turkey Pulse

@TurkeyPulse

Jailed Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu’s X account was blocked in Turkey, the social media platform confirmed on Thursday, @ezgi_akin reports https://t.co/wI88EohLDU

BirGün Gazetesi

@BirGun_Gazetesi

It turned out that the “hand kiss” was justified in the arrest of Saldıroğlu, the lawyer who distributed the shares of Imamoğlu for “insulting the President” https://t.co/oed404stln

BirGün Gazetesi

@BirGun_Gazetesi

Burak Saldıroğlu, the lawyer who distributed the printouts of Imamoğlu's blocked x account, has been arrested! https://t.co/c8a4Vw8LJN