Turkish riot police entered the Ankara headquarters of the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) on Sunday, using tear gas and rubber bullets to remove the party leadership that had been staying inside. The operation followed a court decision earlier this week that voided Ozgur Ozel’s 2023 election as CHP chair and temporarily reinstated former leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu.
The court suspended Ozel and members of the party’s executive board. Ozel’s team denounced the ruling as a “judicial coup” and vowed to hold the building day and night in defiance of the order. Supporters and officials had occupied the headquarters for three days before police moved in to enforce the court decision.
Before the police action, backers of Kilicdaroglu attempted to seize the building, prompting clashes that ended when officers secured the premises. Some people tried to block police entry, but officers ultimately evicted those who remained inside. As he was escorted out, Ozel said the CHP would continue its work “on the streets or in the squares.”
The party has filed an appeal with Turkey’s Supreme Court, but legal experts say a final decision could take more than a year. Meanwhile, CHP figures have called for internal gatherings: Ozel urged that a new party congress be convened as soon as possible, while Kilicdaroglu said a congress would be held at an “appropriate” time.
The court ruling is a major setback for the CHP at a sensitive moment in Turkish politics. Kilicdaroglu led the CHP for 13 years without winning a national election; Ozel, by contrast, won a significant victory against President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s AKP in the 2024 municipal elections in his first contest as party leader. The next national vote is scheduled for 2028, although the president can call an early election.
The party’s position is further complicated by the legal troubles of other high-profile CHP figures: Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, a key rival to Erdogan, has been imprisoned since March last year and faces corruption charges.
The eviction marks an escalation in the dispute over party leadership and could reshape internal dynamics at the CHP as it prepares for future electoral challenges. For now, the immediate legal battle over the court’s decision is expected to continue through Turkey’s appeals process.