Turkey’s Kanal Istanbul Faces Legal Hurdles

A Turkish court has upheld an opposition complaint against President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s multibillion-dollar canal project, causing a setback for the leader’s latest megaproject. The opposition-run Istanbul municipality argued that the canal and the government’s development plan would cause irreparable damage to agricultural land, forests, and water basins and worsen traffic congestion. Erdogan has envisioned the $15 billion canal project as an alternative to the Bosphorus Strait, claiming it would relieve shipping traffic, but opponents fear its potential impact on the environment and an increase in the city’s population to over 16 million.

Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, seen as a future rival to Erdogan, strongly opposes the project, calling it “suicide.” The project is expected to be a focus of the political campaign for local elections, with Imamoglu running against former environment minister Murat Kurum, a supporter of the canal. Erdogan has invested heavily in infrastructure projects to garner voter support over the past two decades, but the decision to uphold the opposition complaint could pose a challenge to his plans.

The 11th Administrative Court in Istanbul canceled the development plan for the Yenişehir Reserve, invalidating and rejecting the ministry’s plan. The decision can be appealed by the ministry, but the project’s future remains uncertain as it becomes a central issue in the upcoming local elections.

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