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Turkey

June 23, 2026

Ankara 2:46 pm

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Germany's forward #26 Deniz Undav (2nd R), an ethnic Kurd, scores his team's first goal during the 2026 World Cup Group E football match between Germany and Ivory Coast at the Toronto Stadium in Toronto on June 20, 2026.

Culture

Amid political setbacks, Kurds shine at the World Cup

Kurdish players and clubs are making rare global gains on football’s biggest stage, offering a brief lift amid ongoing political setbacks across the region.

This photograph shows a Turkish national flag at the Razi-Kapikoy border crossing with Iran next to a black flag on the Iranian side, following the death of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, in eastern Turkey on March 2, 2026.

Analysis

Turkey eyes gains from US-Iran deal as Ankara balances Tehran, Washington

Turkey sees the US-Iran memorandum as a chance to reduce regional spillover risks, revive trade with Tehran and gain diplomatic breathing room.

Barin Kayaoglu

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

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.

Latest News

Culture

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

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

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

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

Analysis

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

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

Barin Kayaoglu

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

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

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

'Working Journalists Day' adds insult to injury for Turkish press

This year's "Working Journalists Day" is a bleak holiday indeed in Turkey, the biggest jailer of journalists in the world.

Iraqi President Fuad Masum (R) meets with Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim (L) at the presidential palace in Baghdad on January 7, 2017.
Iraq and Turkey's prime ministers held talks in Baghdad which both said reflected progress in resolving a bitter row over the presence of Turkish troops in northern Iraq. / AFP / POOL / KHALID AL-MOUSILY (Photo credit should read KHALID AL-MOUSILY/AFP/Getty Images)

Will Turkey, Iraq open new chapter in ties?

Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim’s visit to Iraq last week has signaled a willingness to improve relations between the two countries after a period of intense animosity.

People walk past a picture of Syria's President Bashar al-Assad at Bab Sharqi entrance, near the Jobar district of Damascus, Syria, January 5, 2017. REUTERS/Omar Sanadiki - RTX2XN2D

Two sides of Syria: Damascus and Aleppo

While Aleppo lies in ruins, life in wartime Damascus remains vibrant, but not untouched.

A Turkish flag (R) flies among others flags of NATO members during the North Atlantic Council (NAC) at the Alliance headquarters in Brussels, Belgium, July 28, 2015. REUTERS/Francois Lenoir/File Photo - RTSRWLT

Will Turkey leave NATO?

Observers wonder whether an offer of full membership in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization would lure Turkey away from NATO and the country's "suffering" at the hands of the European Union.

Riot police scuffle with protesters trying to march to the Turkish Parliament as the lawmakers gather to debate the proposed constitutional changes in Ankara, Turkey, January 9, 2017. REUTERS/Umit Bektas - RTX2Y3PK

Contentious debate opens on Turkish presidential system

Although a constitutional amendment to switch the Turkish government to a presidential system looks likely to pass parliament, the outcome of a referendum on the measure is anyone's guess.

A female member of the Sinjar Resistance Units (YBS), a militia affiliated with the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), carries a sniper and an AK-47 rifle in the village of Umm al-Dhiban, northern Iraq, April 29, 2016. They share little more than an enemy and struggle to communicate on the battlefield, but together two relatively obscure groups have opened up a new front against Islamic State militants in a remote corner of Iraq. The unlikely alliance between the Sinjar Resistance Units, an offshoot of a lefti

Who's fighting whom in Iraq's Sinjar?

After KRG Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani warned that the KRG may resort to force to expel the Kurdistan Workers Party from Sinjar, tensions rose in the region.

Ambulances are parked next to the site of an explosion in front of the courthouse in Izmir on January 5, 2017.
A car bombing rocked the Turkish city of Izmir on January 5, 2016, killing at least two people and triggering a shootout that left two suspected militants dead, as authorities chased the fugitive killer behind the New Year attack in Istanbul. / AFP / EMRE TAZEGUL (Photo credit should read EMRE TAZEGUL/AFP/Getty Images)

Why Turkish government pushes 'global conspiracy' narrative

Fueled by conspiracies and fake news, Turkey’s ruling elite want to portray all hostile acts in the country as controlled by a Western “mastermind."

Foreign ministers, Sergei Lavrov (C) of Russia, Mevlut Cavusoglu (R) of Turkey and Mohammad Javad Zarif of Iran, attend a news conference in Moscow, Russia, December 20, 2016. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov - RTX2VUYG

Is Iran following Russia’s lead in Syria?

Russian diplomatic blitz on Syria includes building bridges between Iran and Turkey.

Does New Year's nightclub attack signal tough year ahead for Turkey?

As transnational networks of the Islamic State come under increasing pressure in Iraq and Syria, they are likely to shift to Turkey, while Ankara still gives priority to the Kurdistan Workers Party.

Three reasons the Islamic State is focused on Turkey

While the Islamic State intensifies its activity throughout Turkey, questions are raised as to whether Middle Eastern wars are now engulfing Turkey.

Nightclub attack brings Turkey's IS battle to domestic soil

The Istanbul nightclub attack on New Year’s Eve has made Turkey's security deficiencies painfully clear.

Iraqi Kurdistan oil a slippery issue

Ownership of Iraqi Kurdistan oil is a major source of friction between Baghdad and Erbil, while Turkey and Iran compete for lucrative oil transport contracts.