A violent brawl broke out Wednesday in Turkey’s parliament after President Recep Tayyip Erdogan appointed Istanbul’s chief public prosecutor, Akın Gürlek, as justice minister, a move that followed his recent crackdown on the secular opposition.
The clash erupted after lawmakers approved Gürlek’s appointment. As he attempted to approach the podium to take the oath of office, legislators from the opposition Republican People's Party, known as the CHP, rushed forward to block him, triggering a melee with members of Erdogan’s ruling Justice and Development Party, or AK Party.
Brawl erupts in Turkish parliament
A reporter for CNN Turk said some lawmakers removed their shoes during the scuffle, calling the scenes “images that will be remembered for a long time.” Turkish media reported that CHP lawmaker Mahmut Tanal suffered a broken nose. Property inside the chamber was also damaged.
The session was briefly suspended following the brawl but later resumed. Gürlek eventually reached the podium, surrounded by AK Party lawmakers, and was sworn in.
Gürlek has served as Istanbul’s chief prosecutor since 2024, overseeing a sweeping series of arrests and indictments targeting CHP officials. The investigations included multiple probes into Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, Erdogan’s most prominent political rival.
Imamoglu was arrested in March last year and has remained in custody since. In a 4,000-page indictment filed in November, prosecutors sought a sentence of more than 2,000 years in prison for Imamoglu on allegations of leading a vast corruption network.
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Mass protests in Istanbul following Imamoglu's arrest
(Photo: Chris McGrath/Getty Images)
His arrest sparked nationwide protests that were the largest in Turkey in more than a decade.
Erdogan appointed Gürlek to replace Justice Minister Yılmaz Tunç in what amounted to a surprise Cabinet reshuffle, the first since elections held in mid-2023. In the same move, he named Erzurum Governor Mustafa Çiftçi as interior minister, replacing Ali Yerlikaya, a former Istanbul governor. No explanation was provided for the dismissals of the two incumbent ministers.
Under Gürlek’s tenure as chief prosecutor, hundreds of elected officials and opposition party members were detained as part of the crackdown. The campaign drew sharp criticism from opposition leaders, human rights organizations and several foreign officials, who described it as politically motivated and anti-democratic. Erdogan’s government has rejected those accusations, insisting that Turkey’s judiciary operates independently.
Speaking Wednesday, CHP leader Özgür Özel said Gürlek’s appointment was a continuation of what he called a “judicial coup attempt” that began during his time as prosecutor and described it as another major attack on his party.
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Brawl erupts in Turkish parliament after Erdogan names prosecutor as justice minister
“We will not surrender. They will not be able to stop us on our path to power,” Özel said, adding that fair political competition no longer exists in Turkey.
The government has not explained why it decided to replace the justice and interior ministers.
The reshuffle comes as Turkey debates possible constitutional reforms and advances a peace initiative with the outlawed Kurdish militant group Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK, aimed at ending decades of conflict. Parliament is expected to approve reforms intended to move that process forward.