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A man helps build a barricade as demonstrators clash with riot police (unseen) during a protest against corruption in the Kadikoy district of Istanbul on Wednesday.
Turkey’s prime minister says he believes he is the ultimate target of a corruption and bribery probe of his allies that has shaken the government.
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said anyone attempting to draw him into the scandal would be “left empty-handed.” His comments were published in two newspapers Thursday.
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Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan speaks to journalists as he presents the new ministers’ cabinet list at the Prime Minister’s office in Ankara, after his meeting with the president, on Wednesday. He said he believes he is the ultimate target of the corruption and bribery probe that has shaken the government.
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Erdogan reshuffled his Cabinet on Wednesday, replacing 10 ministers hours after three, whose sons were detained in relation to the probe, resigned. One of those ministers called on Erdogan to step down.
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Turkey’s outgoing Economy Minister Zafer Caglayan (left) waves as he arrives with the newly named Economy Minister Nihat Zeybekci (second from right) for a handover ceremony in Ankara on Thursday.
The scandal focuses on alleged illicit money transfers to Iran and bribes for construction projects. Two of the sons were arrested on bribery charges.
