Istanbul mayor hit with another judicial probe, media reports

FILE PHOTO: Mayor of Istanbul Ekrem Imamoglu gestures during an interview with Reuters in Istanbul, Turkey, December 6, 2021. Picture taken December 6, 2021. REUTERS/Umit Bektas/File Photo

ISTANBUL (Reuters) - An Istanbul prosecutor launched another judicial investigation into the city's Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu on Monday for attempting to influence the judiciary after he criticised legal probes into opposition-run municipalities, Turkish media reported.

News of the investigation came minutes after Imamoglu, who is seen as a likely future presidential challenger to Tayyip Erdogan, accused Erdogan's government of using the judiciary as a political tool to pressure the opposition.