Meral Akşener, the leader of the opposing Good Party in Turkey, announced that the party's office in Istanbul was shot at with two bullets late Thursday into Friday. She described this as an attempt to intimidate party members ahead of the upcoming presidential and parliamentary elections next month.
Akşener revealed to reporters that one bullet reached the ground floor while the other hit the third floor. She stated, "This is an attempt to scare members of a political party just a month and a half before the elections. This is unacceptable; we cannot be intimidated, but this is an insult to the voters."
Footage showed a bullet piercing a window on the ground floor where a cafeteria is located, settling into a chair there. The Istanbul Governor’s office reported that the police have opened an investigation into the incident. Later, the Anadolu Agency quoted police as saying that the two bullets were fired by a guard from a construction site while chasing some thieves and that they hit the building by accident, not intentionally. Turkish Interior Minister Süleyman Soylu stated that authorities had apprehended the perpetrator.
The Good Party is part of a coalition of six opposition parties that nominated Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, leader of the Republican People's Party, to run against President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in the elections on May 14.
**Local Condemnations of the Incident**
Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu, who is also a member of the Republican People's Party, condemned the incident and Kılıçdaroğlu urged the authorities to investigate the matter.
Kılıçdaroğlu tweeted, "Ms. Akşener is a strong leader, and you cannot intimidate her this way. I expect the perpetrators to be arrested immediately and brought to justice."
Omer Celik, a spokesperson for the ruling Justice and Development Party led by President Erdoğan, also condemned the incident. He tweeted that it is important to take a united stance against all provocative actions, especially with the elections approaching, adding, "We will stand against attacks on political parties with all our might."
**Erdoğan Faces His Toughest Political Challenge?**
The upcoming elections mark the toughest political challenge Erdoğan has faced to date; he has led the country for two decades but has seen his popularity decline amid an economic crisis and the impact of the devastating earthquake that struck southeastern Turkey.
Although polls indicate that his approval ratings are lower than Kılıçdaroğlu's, the race remains very close, and the election campaigns are still in their early stages.
