Refugees in Turkey

Youths play the daf, an Iranian frame drum, during a protest demanding the right to education in the Kurdish language in Al-Qamishli, Syria, on September 22, 2026. The demonstrations follow a decision by the Syrian Interim Government to allocate only Kurdish language classes in schools. (Photo by Amjad Kurdo / Middle East Images / AFP via Getty Images)

Culture

Syria's Kurds, Arabs find common cause in battle for language rights

As Kurdish students protest language restrictions, unexpected alliances are emerging between Syria’s Kurds and Arabs.

Syrian textile employees work in a textile workshop in Gaziantep, Turkey, on Jan. 30, 2025.

Explainer

Turkey eases job rules for 1M+ Syrians under temporary protection: What to know

The move, part of a broader easing of restrictions on Syrians living in Turkey, could allow roughly 1.1 million working-age Syrians to enter registered employment more easily as Ankara seeks to reduce informal labor and address workforce gaps.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi attends a joint press conference with his Russian counterpart following their talks in Moscow on December 17, 2025. (Photo by Ramil Sitdikov / POOL / AFP via Getty Images)

Iran FM heads to Turkey in last-ditch effort to avoid US escalation

Ankara is stepping up efforts to ease Iran-US tensions, as Turkey's top diplomat meets with a US envoy ahead of the Iranian foreign minister's Friday visit to Turkey.

A B model of Bayraktar AKINCI TİHA (Assault Unmanned Aerial Vehicle) in the sky on March 2, 2022 in Corlu, Turkey.

Turkey arrests 6 in alleged Iran IRGC spy plot involving armed drones

Turkish authorities arrested six people accused of spying for Tehran, as Ankara works on plans to contain security risks and refugee fallout from potential US strikes on Iran.

Latest News

Interview

UNRWA plans Turkey office to boost Gaza, Syria aid as pledges dip

A boy sits outside the entrance to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) building complex in Gaza City, on Sept. 6, 2025.

Tamara Alrifai

Turkey to begin natural gas exports to Syria on Aug. 2: What to know

Workers walk past the gas turbine and heat recovery system of Syria's largest power plant on June 12, 2025 in Deir Ali, Syria.

Turkey ramps up Iran border security as Ankara, UNHCR monitor refugee risks

Turkish soldiers patrol near the border wall between Turkey and Iran in the Van Province, eastern Turkey, on Nov. 1, 2024.

Analysis

As Turkey eases ban, Syrian refugees can now visit before deciding to return

Syrians living in Turkey carry their belongings towards the Cilvegozu border gate to cross into Syria after after Syrian rebels ousted President Bashar al-Assad on Dec. 13, 2024 in Cilvegozu, Turkey.

Ezgi Akin

In Ankara, reporting on diplomacy, EU-Turkey ties, NATO

Incoming Syrian refugees who were suddenly deported from Turkey await to register with officials as they reenter Syria, at the Bab al-Hawa crossing between Turkey and Syria's northwestern Idlib province, July 24, 2019.

Turkey forcibly deports dozens of Syrians

Turkish authorities have deported about 150 Syrians, even though most had official papers to reside in Turkey, including university students studying at Turkish universities.

Bunches of bananas, which were to be disposed of by a supermarket, sit in a crate at food-waste charity The Felix Project's warehouse in Park Royal on Feb. 27, 2019 in London, England.

Syrians to be deported for eating bananas 'provocatively' in Turkey

As tensions soar between Turks and their country's 4 million refugees, a viral trend of young Syrians posting videos of themselves eating bananas has ended in some set to be deported.

Turkey garbage

Istanbul’s war on street waste collectors threatens migrants

Police raids on the unregulated recycling sector are targeting some of the poorest members of Turkish society, including undocumented refugees with few other options to survive.

A doctor examines a Syrian refugee baby at the Kahramanmaras refugee camp's hospital, Kahramanmaras, Turkey, Sept. 19, 2019.

Turkey suspends free medical treatment for Syrians

New measures restrict the entry of Syrian patients to Turkey by canceling free treatment in its state hospitals and forcing them to pay the full cost of treatment.

Jandarma officers monitor Afghan migrants sitting in the back of a smuggler's van that was caught transporting the migrants from the Turkey-Iran border on July 10, 2021 in Caldiran, Turkey.

Turkey won't accept 'refugee burden' from Afghanistan

Turkey, which already hosts more than 300,000 Afghans, has warned it doesn't have the resources to accept additional migrants from the war-torn country.

A part of Turkey’s newly completed border wall is seen on the Turkey-Iran border on July 10, 2021, in Caldiran, Turkey.

Turkey bolsters border against Afghan refugees

Turkey is expecting refugees to arrive from war-torn Afghanistan via Iran and is increasing border security as a result, according to Turkish media.

Men smash up shops and homes believed to be owned by Syrian families during an unrest, in Ankara, on Aug. 12, 2021 overnight.

Syrian homes, businesses destroyed in Turkish capital amid rising anti-immigrant sentiment

At least 76 people have been detained in connection with the rampage.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken speaks about refugee programs for Afghans who aided the United States, during a briefing at the State Department on Aug. 2, 2021, in Washington, DC.

Ankara unsettled by role in US program to relocate Afghans

Washington unveiled a program Monday for Afghan refugees to seek asylum in the United States via third countries, including Turkey, raising criticism from Ankara officials who fear the move could fuel a new migration crisis.

Migrants from Afghanistan arrive after crossing the Aegean Sea from Turkey with a dinghy on the Greek Mediterranean island of Lesbos, Greece, Aug. 6, 2018.

Afghan refugee influx stokes tensions in Turkey

Fresh refugee influx from Afghanistan to Turkey has stoked political and social tensions in the country where the refugee crisis is becoming more politicized.

BULENT KILIC/AFP via Getty Images

Stream of Afghan asylum seekers reported in eastern Turkey

As the United States continues its troop withdrawal from Afghanistan, disputed reports indicate a rising number of asylum seekers of Afghan origin are crossing Turkey’s eastern border.

Angela Merkel (2ndR), talks to Greece's Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis

EU leaders back funding but warn Erdogan against 'instrumentalizing' Syrian migrants

EU leaders propose further funding to Turkey for Syrian refugees, but, at Greece’s insistence, issue a warning that the bloc “condemns any attempt by third countries to instrumentalize migrants for political purposes.”

Amal, the Syrian refugee puppet.

Syrian refugees’ long walk: why Amal is more than a puppet

A giant puppet of a young Syrian girl will travel nearly 8,000 kilometers (5,000 miles) from the Turkish-Syrian border to the United Kingdom.