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Turkey

Turkey

November 11, 2026

Ankara 9:15 am

5°C

OZAN KOSE/AFP via Getty Images

Turkey bars MP’s wife from travel after his fund scandal criticism: What to know

Opposition politicians and rights advocates described Yonca Verdioglu Sik’s brief detention as an attempt to intimidate her husband, opposition lawmaker Ahmet Sik, over his criticism of the government.

A steel worker works in front of giant iron melting pot in Kardemir Iron and Steel Factory in Karabuk, northwestern Turkey, Aug. 26 2005. (TARIK TINAZAY/AFP via Getty Images)

Steel factory explosion in western Turkey kills at least 16

Footage from the scene showed a huge plume of thick smoke spreading into the sky as flames engulfed a tall structure within the plant.

MEHMET ESER/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images

Analysis

Will Democrats block Trump’s push to deliver Turkey F-35s, lift sanctions?

Democratic control of Congress complicates Turkey’s push for F-35s and sanctions relief, but Ankara remains hopeful Trump can still broker a deal.

Barin Kayaoglu

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

Latest News

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United Arab Emirates

Turkey’s parliament ratifies Mecca pact in boost to Saudi Arabia

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan addresses Turkish members of parliament during the opening of the parliamentary session at the Grand National Assembly of Turkey in Ankara, on Oct. 1, 2026.

Can Erdogan’s Baku visit fix Turkey-Azerbaijan rift?

TOFIK BABAYEV/AFP via Getty Images

Samuel Wendel

Senior Analyst, Middle East Business & Tech

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 man looks at newspapers at a kiosk in Diyarbakir, Turkey November 2, 2015. Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said on Monday the nation had voted for stability in a parliamentary election that saw the AK Party he founded win almost 50 percent of the vote, and said the world should respect the result. REUTERS/Stoyan Nenov - RTX1UCZZ

Turks love their language, but also fight over it

Turks proudly celebrate their language, but they have always fought over it.

Men inspect the damage after an airstrike on the rebel held al-Qaterji neighbourhood of Aleppo, Syria September 25, 2016. REUTERS/Abdalrhman Ismail - RTSPBZ8

What's behind Ankara’s 'deafening silence' on Aleppo?

Reconciliation with Russia is preventing Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan from blasting away at Syrian President Bashar al-Assad as he once did.

A Turkish special forces police officer guards the entrance of the Presidential Palace in Ankara, Turkey, August 5, 2016. REUTERS/Umit Bektas - RTSL6LJ

Will state of emergency become the new normal for Turkey?

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan appears to be contemplating extending the state of emergency in Turkey beyond 12 months.

A Kurdish fighter from the People's Protection Units (YPG) rides on a pick-up truck mounted with an anti-aircraft weapon in the Ghwairan neighborhood of Hasaka, Syria, August 22, 2016. The Arabic on the wall reads, "Bashar al-Assad is the glory and the pride of the nation." REUTERS/Rodi Said - RTX2MKNY

Turkey-US ties could fray further as Pentagon mulls arming YPG

Already rocky relations between Turkey and the United States are likely to worsen if the White House approves an expected Pentagon request to provide more weapons to the People's Protection Units.

News anchor Banu Guven is seen on a screen during a news broadcast at a studio of IMC TV, a news broadcaster slated for closure, in Istanbul, Turkey, September 30, 2016. REUTERS/Huseyin Aldemir - RTSQ9GP

Why is the Turkish government now targeting cartoons?

The Turkish government’s onslaught on small broadcasters with predominantly Kurdish, Alevi and leftist audiences sparks fears beyond the issue of press freedom.

A general view of the Harran refugee camp is seen in the Sanliurfa province, Turkey, June 6, 2016. REUTERS/Umit Bektas - RTSGANU

How did Ankara's spending on Syrian refugees jump to $25 billion?

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan recently claimed Turkey spent $25 billion on Syrian refugees, although he had cited $10 billion in February and even the number of refugees did not change.

Turkey's Energy Minister Berat Albayrak addresses the media in Ankara, Turkey July 27, 2016. REUTERS/Umit Bektas - RTSJWB9

RedHackers daunt the Erdogan family

The alleged hacking of email accounts belonging to Berat Albayrak, the son-in-law of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, validates deep-rooted suspicions of AKP corruption, media censorship and intricate intra-AKP rivalries.

U.S. based cleric Fethullah Gulen at his home in Saylorsburg, Pennsylvania, U.S. July 29, 2016. REUTERS/Charles Mostoller - RTSKAK8

Iraqi Kurdistan government seized, sold Gulen schools

The Kurdistan Regional Government, at Turkey's request, has sold educational institutes affiliated with the cleric Fethullah Gulen and seized other Gulenist-run institutions.

Siirt, TURKEY: A village guard poses with his rifle in his cabin in the mountainous southeastern city of Siirt, Pervari province, 28 June 2005. The outlawed Kurdistan Worker's Party (PKK) retaliated by blowing up a train in Bingol at the weekend, killing five people. The unrest marks sharply increased violence between the PKK and the army in the Turkish southeast since April, months after the rebels, 01 June 2004, called off a five-year unilateral ceasefire. AFP PHOTO/MUSTAFA OZER (Photo credit sh

Why Turkey is boosting its budget for dubious 'village guards'

The paramilitary force that Turkey formed to fight the Kurdistan Workers Party has been controversial since the 1980s, so why is the government expanding it now?

The Ottoman era Dolmabahce Palace is decorated with a huge Turkish flag as part of the National Sovereignty and Children's Day celebrations in Istanbul, April 23, 2009. The National Sovereignty and Children's day marks the 89th anniversary of the opening of the Turkey's National Assembly. REUTERS/Murad Sezer (TURKEY ANNIVERSARY POLITICS) - RTXEAOM

Why is Turkey reviving an Ottoman sultan?

A great Ottoman sultan-caliph is being re-popularized in today’s Turkey with a clear political intention: legitimizing authoritarian rule.

ISTANBUL, TURKEY: Two unidentified transsexual prostitutes stand near the main road waiting for customer in central Istanbul, in Taksim Square, 12 December 2003. AFP PHOTO/ Mustafa Ozer (Photo credit should read MUSTAFA OZER/AFP/Getty Images)

Barely illegal: The changing face of Turkey's pleasure industry

Prostitution and escort services — often one and the same — are flourishing through aggressive promotions using hookup apps, social media and online marketplaces right under the nose of Islamists.

AKPwareconomy%5B8%5D.jpg

AKP’s war economy widens income gap

A recent survey by Turkey’s official statistics agency reveals growing income disparities as the country’s economic downturn continues amid unrest both at home and in the region.