Turkish police fire teargas to break up protest after opposition leader ousted

Riot police in Turkey have fired teargas and water cannon to break up a rally called by ousted opposition leader Özgür Özel, days after a court dismissed him from office. The protest in Izmir on Tuesday came two days after riot police battered their way into the main opposition CHP’s headquarters in the capital, Ankara, firing teargas and beating party members before throwing them out, Özel told AFP on Sunday. The dramatic scenes followed a shock court ruling on Thursday that overturned a 2023 party primary that elected Özel. It was the latest in a string of moves against the CHP, Turkey’s oldest political party, which scored a major political win over President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s ruling AKP in 2024 local elections and has been rising in the polls. Since the court ruling, the party has been in chaos. Özel called the lunchtime rally in Izmir as Turkey was poised to shut down for the four-day Eid al-Fitr holiday, which begins on Wednesday. Özgür Özel, the deposed leader of Turkey's main opposition, arrives for a rally in Izmir on Tuesday. Photograph: Erdem Şahin/AP Özgür Özel in Izmir on Tuesday. Photograph: EPA Ahead of the rally, the governorate ordered the closure of the city’s central Cumhuriyet Square, deploying a large number of riot police with water cannon trucks who tried to break up the flag-waving crowd, Turkish media reported. “President Özgür, free Turkey!” they shouted in scenes broadcast live on TV. …