(May 7, 2025)Congress President Marc Cools led the first international delegation to meet Mayor İmamoğlu following his arrest on 23 March 2025.

After their official visit to Türkiye on 5-6 May 2025, the delegation made the following statement:

“Following our substantial exchange of views with Mr. İmamoğlu we remain convinced that it is unacceptable, under the rule of law, to deprive Istanbul of its elected mayor by detaining him without trial or substantiated charges, and we reiterate our call for his immediate release. This situation constitutes a violation of Mr. İmamoğlu‘s fundamental human rights and seriously hampers the ability of local governance in the largest city of Türkiye to function effectively in serving the needs of its citizens.