Thousands Rally Across Turkey After Court Removes CHP Leadership; International Backlash

Thousands of protesters gathered in Istanbul, Ankara, İzmir, and other major Turkish cities on May 22, 2026, in response to the Ankara court's ruling annulling the CHP leadership. CHP offices across the country saw demonstrations, with protesters denouncing the ruling as an attack on democracy. The BIST-100 stock index had already fallen more than 6% on May 21 as investors reacted to increased political uncertainty. Human Rights Watch published a formal condemnation titled 'Türkiye: Court Removes Leadership of Main Opposition Party,' calling it part of a systematic pattern of using courts to suppress political opposition. The European Union issued a statement calling for Turkey to allow the opposition to operate freely, while the US State Department expressed concern about the erosion of democratic norms. The Council of Europe's Venice Commission announced it would review the ruling's compatibility with European democratic standards. CHP announced plans to appeal the ruling at Turkey's constitutional court while calling emergency sessions of its parliamentary group.