Erdogan files criminal complaint against opposition leader Ozel for insult, defamation

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has filed a criminal complaint against main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) leader Ozgür Ozel, alleging public insult and defamation.

The complaint, filed by Erdogan’s attorney Ahmet Ozel with Istanbul’s Anadolu Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office, accuses Ozel of targeting the president with offensive language during a recent speech outside Esenyurt Municipality.

According to the complaint, the Turkish opposition leader’s remarks “openly insulted the dignity and honor” of the office of the president. Video and written reports of the speech were widely circulated, with Ozel allegedly comparing Erdogan to figures such as a “coup plotter, terrorist leader, conspirator, and dictator.”

The complaint claims these statements humiliated Erdogan and harmed his public reputation, prompting the request for Ozel to be prosecuted at the highest penalty under Turkish Penal Code provisions related to defamation and public insult.

The complaint further states that Ozel’s remarks disparaged Erdogan’s anti-terrorism efforts, a stance “well known by the public,” and damaged the standing of Türkiye’s highest office.

Ozel is also accused of attempting to portray a judicial decision—regarding Esenyurt Mayor Ahmet Ozer’s recent arrest on alleged terror charges—as directed by Erdogan himself, thereby implicating him in supposed misconduct.

Erdogan’s legal team filed a separate civil suit in Istanbul’s Civil Court of First Instance seeking 1 million Turkish lira in damages, alleging that Ozel’s speech constituted a “grave attack” on Erdogan’s personal and official honor.

The lawsuit states that Ozel’s statements, which were subsequently broadcast nationwide, amounted to a calculated effort to foster public mistrust in Erdogan and create negative perceptions around him.

Ozel reportedly described Ozer’s arrest as the product of a “conspiracy” that lacked procedural legality, a characterization which, according to the lawsuit, unjustly attributes judicial and administrative decisions to Erdogan personally.