More huge protests in Istanbul over mayor’s arrest

The mayor of Istanbul, Ekrem İmamoglu, is expected to be announced as his party’s official presidential candidate despite being arrested on charges of corruption. The CHP said almost 15m votes were cast in today’s primary ballot in which Imamoglu was the only candidate. He is the main political rival to President Erdogan and his detention has sparked demonstrations for several days in Istanbul. We get the view of a former US ambassador to Turkey, James Jeffrey, on how he thinks Washington should respond.

Canada’s new Prime Minister Mark Carney has called for a snap election despite only being in office for nine days. We speak to a journalist in Canada to hear what we can expect from the election.

Also on the programme: the American special envoy, Steve Witkoff, has said that the areas in Ukraine that Russia has annexed held referendums in 2022 which showed strong support for joining Russia. We get the reaction of a woman in Kherson, a city which was occupied by Russian forces for eight months and which Russia claims to have annexed.

(Photo: Turkish riot police clash with protesters trying to march to Taksim Square from the Istanbul Municipality headquarters during a protest against the detention of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu in Istanbul, Turkey, 23 March 2025. Credit: Photo by ERDEM SAHIN/EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock)