Il Nuovo Postiglione - More than 340 held after mass protests in Turkey

Hundreds of thousands of people hit the streets across the country late Friday, sparking clashes with riot police in Turkey's three largest cities: Istanbul, the capital Ankara and the western coastal city of Izmir.

Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya said "343 suspects were caught in the protests that took place in Istanbul, Ankara, Izmir, Adana, Antalya, Canakkale, Eskisehir, Konya and Edirne," warning that those who sought to sow "chaos and provocation.. will definitely not be tolerated!"

It was the third straight night that protesters rallied in support of Imamoglu -- President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's biggest political rival, whose arrest Wednesday triggered a massive show of defiance that spread from Istanbul to more than 50 of Turkey's 81 provinces.

During the evening, fierce clashes broke out between protesters and riot police, who fired tear gas, rubber bullets and water cannon to disperse them in Istanbul, Ankara and Izmir.

After spending his third night in custody, Imamoglu -- who was arrested just days before the CHP was to name him their candidate for the 2028 presidential race -- began speaking to police on Saturday morning in connection with the "terror" probe, party sources told AFP.

He was then expected to appear before prosecutors at Caglayan courthouse at 1800 GMT to be questioned in both the graft and the terror probes, they said.

Already named in a growing list of legal probes, Imamoglu -- who was resoundingly re-elected last year -- has been accused alongside six others of "aiding and abetting a terrorist organisation" -- namely the banned Kurdish militant group PKK.

He is also under investigation for "bribery, extortion, corruption, aggravated fraud, and illegally obtaining personal data for profit as part of a criminal organisation" along with 99 other suspects.

- Quizzed for six hours -

He was questioned by police for six hours Friday about the graft allegations, the party said.

"Mr Imamoglu denies all the charges against him," one of his lawyers, Mehmet Pehlivan said.

"The detention was aimed at undermining Mr Imamoglu’s reputation in the eyes of society," he wrote on X early on Saturday, saying both probes were "based on untrue allegations" and "a violation of the right to a fair trial".

Demonstrators across the country were due to rally again on Saturday night.

In a message on X sent via his lawyers, Imamoglu said he was "honoured and proud" of the demonstrators who hit the streets in more than 50 of Turkey's 81 provinces, saying they were "protecting our republic, our democracy, the future of a just Turkey, and the will of our nation".

Addressing the crowds outside City Hall in Istanbul on Friday night, Ozgur Ozel, who heads the main opposition CHP, said 300,000 people had joined the demonstration in defiance of a protest ban and a sharp warning from Erdogan that Turkey would not tolerate "street terror".

Speaking Friday, Erdogan had fired a warning shot across Ozel's bows, accusing him of "grave irresponsibility" in remarks echoed by ministers and other officials, raising the prospect that Ozel too could face legal sanction.

"Those who provoke our citizens and cause them to clash with our security forces are committing a clear crime.. There is no way this dirty scheme can be allowed!" wrote Istanbul governor Davut Gul on X on Saturday, warning those responsible would be tried in court.

The move against Imamoglu has hurt the Turkish lira and financial markets, with the stock exchange's BIST 100 index closing down nearly eight percent on Friday.

Q.Bernardi--INP