ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — Turkey’s president on Friday backpedaled after siding with a top appeals court that defied a Constitutional Court ruling calling for the release of an imprisoned opposition lawmaker.
The court of appeals also took the unprecedented step of filing a criminal complaint against Constitutional Court justices, accusing them of violating the constitution.
In remarks published Friday, Erdogan accused the Constitutional Court - Turkey’s highest court - of making “many mistakes one after the other” and reproached members of his own party who criticized the appeals court.
On Friday, hundreds of members of the Turkish Bar Association marched to the Constitutional Court to protest the appeals court’s decision not to implement its ruling.
The Constitutional Court, which reviewed his case last month, had ruled for Atalay’s release, saying his freedoms and rights to hold office were being violated.
Persons:
—, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Erdogan, ”, ” Erdogan, ” Atalay, Atalay
Organizations:
Constitutional, Turkish Bar Association, Republican People’s Party, EU
Locations:
ANKARA, Turkey