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Turkey

Turkey

June 19, 2026

Ankara 9:41 am

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A Turkish police officers patrols at the scene of a motor-bike bomb explosion, next to a police station on Oct. 6, 2016, in Istanbul.

Turkey captures alleged ISIS-K media chief near Afghanistan-Pakistan border

The capture comes as Turkish authorities intensify raids against Islamic State networks following recent attacks and alleged plots.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan meets with Orthodox Patriarch of Bartholomew at the presidential complex, Ankara, Turkey, June 16, 2026.

Culture

Turkey’s Erdogan meets Orthodox patriarch amid push for reopening Halki Seminary

The meeting comes ahead of US President Trump’s expected attendance at next month's NATO leaders’ summit in Turkey, after Trump personally urged his Turkish counterpart to reopen the Halki Seminary.

Turkey's Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan attends the NATO Foreign Ministers' meeting in Helsingborg, Sweden, on May 22, 2026.

Turkey’s Fidan heads to Moscow as S-400 sanctions issue returns to fore

The visit comes weeks before Turkey hosts NATO leaders, on the sidelines of which Ankara hopes to reach a deal with Washington over CAATSA sanctions over its purchase of Russian S-400s.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan received Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the Turkish House in New York on Sept. 19, 2023.

Analysis

Erdogan-Netanyahu war of words signals deeper rivalry for regional influence

The latest Erdogan-Netanyahu clash underscored how Turkey-Israel tensions have grown beyond the Palestinian issue and into a wider regional rivalry spanning Syria, Lebanon, Iran and the eastern Mediterranean.

Barin Kayaoglu

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

Latest News

Feature

Turkey’s World Cup return clouded by politics, dawn kickoffs

Yasin AKGUL / AFP via Getty Images

Ezgi Akin

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

Explainer

Turkey slams France-Cyprus military pact as East Med rivalries deepen

Cyprus' President Nikos Christodoulides (2nd L) and his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron (C) review the honor guard at the Presidential Palace in Nicosia on April 23, 2026, ahead of a meeting on the sidelines of a European summit.

Samuel Wendel

Senior Market Research Analyst

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Amberin Zaman

Chief Correspondent

Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

Jack Dutton

Chief Business Correspondent

In Bristol, reporting on regional business, climate change, AI, tech

Ezgi Akin

Associate Editor (Turkey)

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

Francesco Schiavi

In Bologna, reporting on security, defense, economy, governance

Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

A member of the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) mans a weapon mounted on a pick-up truck as others talk to each others along a street in the west of the city of Ras al-Ain, after capturing it from Islamist rebels November 5, 2013. Redur Xelil, spokesman for the armed wing of the Syrian Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD), said Kurdish militias had seized the city of Ras al-Ain and all its surrounding villages. Syrian Kurdish fighters have captured more territory from Islamist rebels in northeastern

Turkey’s problem with Syrian Kurds far from over

Ankara has accepted the Russian proposal to have Kurdish participation in Syrian national reconciliation while excluding the PYD, but the latter will remain the elephant in the room.

Women Turkish army officers hold their swords to salute President Ahmet
Necdet Sezer as they parade during a ceremony August 30, 2001, marking the
79th anniversary of Victory Day which is celebrated throughout the country.
Victory day marks the last and biggest attack to drive the Greek army out of
the country during the five year long Independence War after the Ottoman
empire had collapsed. Ataturk founded the Turkish republic in 1923 following
the independence war. REUTERS/Fatih Saribas

FS - RP2DRIEFZUAA

Turkish Armed Forces seeks female fighters

The Turkish military is set to recruit 8,000 women in an effort to bolster its image and defang Kurdish militias' association with female empowerment.

Turkey plans short turnaround on long-range missiles in 2018

Regional conflicts have shown the importance of deep-strike capability with cruise missiles, and Turkey is now working hard to acquire it.

Turkey’s top religious body okays divorce via text message

Turkey’s Directorate of Religious Affairs has issued several controversial opinions, most recently one stating that men may divorce their wives via a telephone call, fax, text message or email.

Worshippers sit around before Friday prayers on the compound known to Muslims as Noble Sanctuary and to Jews as Temple Mount in Jerusalem's Old City, as Palestinians call for a "Day of Rage" in response to President Donald Trump's recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital December 15, 2017 REUTERS/Ammar Awad

Is Trump’s Jerusalem decision winner for Iran?

Islamic Jihad gains momentum in the Gaza Strip, US-Jordan relations are shaken, US-Turkey relations worsen and Iran reaps the benefits without lifting a finger.

Turkish feminist artist takes on Mount Qaf

An exhibition in Istanbul by the Turkish artist CANAN defies gender stereotypes and sexual taboos, marrying the personal with the political.

Trump's Jerusalem move puts US, Turkey on collision course

The Organization of Islamic Cooperation convened in Istanbul this week to challenge Trump's decision on Jerusalem while the Trump administration prepares a new potential strategy for how to deal with Turkey.

People sit in the back of a truck as they celebrate what they said was the liberation of villages from Islamist rebels near the city of Ras al-Ain in the province of Hasakah, after capturing it from Islamist rebels November 6, 2013. Redur Xelil, spokesman for the armed wing of the Syrian Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD), said Kurdish militias had seized the city of Ras al-Ain and all its surrounding villages. Syrian Kurdish fighters have captured more territory from Islamist rebels in northeastern Syria

Turkey backtracking on 'red lines' for Syria's Kurds

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has reportedly agreed to accept Kurdish participation at the Syria congress in Sochi, as long as those Kurds do not belong to the Democratic Union Party.

At Zarrab trial, citizen journalist raises ire of Turkish media

A lone citizen journalist covering the case of Turkish-Iranian gold trader Reza Zarrab in New York is stirring anger among Turkish media for her candid and nontraditional reporting.

Turkish prosecutor wants opposition leader’s immunity scrapped

A Turkish prosecutor filed a criminal complaint against Kemal Kilicdaroglu, chairman of the Republican People’s Party and anti-corruption crusader, potentially expanding a crackdown that has already targeted other members of the parliamentary opposition.

Baghdad could take oil in new direction — away from Turkey

Now that Iraq's central government in Baghdad has reclaimed oil-rich Kirkuk from the Kurdistan Regional Government, Iraq is considering changes that could hurt Turkey's standing in the oil market there.

Turkey's tomato exports to Russia come at a price for Turks

Turkish exporters resumed tomato sales to Russia in November after a two-year embargo, but only a month later, Turkish consumers discovered there is little to celebrate.