Rhino: Agencies – Authorities detained 343 people during protests on Friday night in several cities against the arrest of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imam oglu, the Turkish Interior Ministry said on Saturday.

The demonstrations took place in more than a dozen cities, including Turkey’s largest city of Istanbul and the capital Ankara, the ministry said in a statement. It said the arrests were aimed at preventing ‘disturbing public order’ and warned that the authorities would not tolerate ‘chaos and provocation’.

Tens of thousands of Turks have been taking to the streets in mostly peaceful protests since Wednesday, when Imam oglu was detained on charges such as corruption and aiding a terrorist group. He is President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s main political rival, leading him in some polls.

The Republican People’s Party (CHP), to which the mayor belongs and the main opposition party, condemned the move as politically motivated and urged its supporters to demonstrate legally.