Acting mayor of Istanbul's Üsküdar district dies in Düzce highway crash

The acting mayor of Istanbul's Üsküdar district, Dündar Ziya Gültekin, succumbed to injuries sustained in a three-vehicle pileup on the Ankara-bound section of the Anatolian Motorway in Kaynaşlı, Düzce. Five people were hurt in the crash, and Gültekin died after being taken to a hospital. Hasan Şengüloğlu, the AKP provincial chief in Düzce, announced the death, noting that every medical intervention had been applied without success.

Gültekin had taken office on September 8 after a disputed municipal council election that gave the AKP a majority, replacing the previously elected CHP mayor Sinem Dedetaş, who was detained on corruption charges. The council's earlier vote for CHP candidate Sibel Tan Çetinkaya was annulled by an administrative court, allowing the AKP to secure the acting mayor position. Opposition figures claim the shift was aided by arrests and alleged pressure on council members.