Turkey - AL-MONITOR: The Middle Eastʼs leading independent news source since 2012

Turkey

Turkey

November 11, 2026

Ankara 9:00 pm

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People walk past a Bitcoin sign at the entrance of a cryptocurrency exchange office on Nov. 8, 2024, in Istanbul, Turkey.

Watchdog urges Turkey to tighten digital asset rules for $144B crypto economy

A review of Turkey’s crypto-asset regulations by the Financial Stability Board acknowledged significant progress made by local authorities but called for further measures to address potential risks.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (L) and Central Bank Governor Sahap Kavcioglu attend a signing ceremony with Abu Dhabi’s crown prince, Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan at the Presidential Complex in Ankara on Nov. 24, 2021. ADEM ALTAN/AFP via Getty Images

Turkey’s banking watchdog chief submits resignation amid fund scandal

Turkey’s government is facing growing criticism over regulators’ failure to prevent a fund scandal involving more than $20 billion.

Chris McGrath/Getty Images

Explainer

Iran war pushes up coal use, complicating Turkey’s COP31 pledge

Turkey is asking world leaders at COP31 to back a global push to use more electricity, even as the Iran war has driven up natural gas prices and pushed some power producers back to coal.

Latest News

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

OZAN KOSE/AFP via Getty Images

Steel factory explosion in western Turkey kills at least 16

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)

Analysis

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

MEHMET ESER/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images

Barin Kayaoglu

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

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 Turkish Air Force C-160D Transall transport aircraft takes off from Incirlik airbase in the southern city of Adana, Turkey, July 26, 2015. Kurdish militants killed two Turkish soldiers in a roadside bombing on Sunday, the military said, apparently retaliating for Ankara's crackdown on the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) launched in tandem with strikes on Islamic State insurgents in Syria. Long a member of the U.S.-led coalition against Islamic State, Turkey made a dramatic turnaround this week by granting t

Erdogan’s shift on Islamic State linked to Kurdish gains in Syria

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan finally takes on the Islamic State while attacking PKK bases in northern Iraq; Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu now the only US ally actively opposing Iran deal; Israel faces pressure to forgo demolition of Palestinian village.

Turkey drawn into vortex of violence

A sudden escalation of attacks against police and the military after the Suruc suicide bombing prompts fears that the cease-fire with the Kurds has ended.

Does Turkey care about cultural diversity?

More than 100 countries have endorsed a UN convention on protecting cultural diversity, but a decade after its inception, the convention still awaits ratification by the Turkish parliament.

Cyprus settlement could open trade routes for Turkey

Should the peace talks in Cyprus result in the island’s reunification, the Turkish economy could benefit from Nicosia's close ties in the eastern Mediterranean.

Why are Turkey's televangelists talking about oral sex?

Turkish imams and televangelists are becoming increasingly outspoken in their commentary and debates on permitted sexual practices.

An election billboard with a picture of Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu and a slogan reads that: " 500 Billion Dollars Export" is pictured in Istanbul's financial district of Levent, Turkey, May 25, 2015. For the first time since coming to power in 2002, the AKP is heading into an election under fire over the economy, thanks to stalling growth, stubbornly high unemployment and worrying levels of household debt. That has given the opposition a new line of attack and highlights the difficulties a weake

Ankara turns blind eye to economic downturn

Turkey’s economy is on a worrisome course as tourism and export revenues fall.

The Islamic State's secret recruiting ground in Turkey

Bombers from two separate incidents have hailed from Adiyaman province.

One coastal town's groundbreaking approach to local governance in Turkey

A municipality in southern Turkey has introduced an unprecedented multi-religious, multi-cultural approach to local administration.

Turkey's Constitutional Court stands up to Erdogan

The Turkish Constitutional Court has shown its independence in issuing recent decisions despite the condemnations of the AKP and its propaganda machine.

Relatives of victims who were killed in Monday's bomb attack in Suruc mourn over the coffins at a cemetery in Gaziantep, Turkey, July 21, 2015. Turkey's Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu rejected accusations Turkey had in the past tacitly supported Islamic State militants operating from Syria and unwittingly opened the door to a suicide bombing that killed at least 32 people. The blast on Monday tore through a group of university-aged students from an activist group as they gathered in the border town of Suruc

Deciphering IS' strategy in latest Turkey attack

The July 20 attack on Suruc was designed to send a strong message to Kurds, the United States and Turkey.

Hamas militants take part in a march through the streets of Gaza City, marking the anniversary of a prisoner swap deal between Israel and Hamas, October 18, 2012. Last year, Israel freed more than 1,000 jailed Palestinians in a swap for Gilad Shalit, an Israeli soldier held in Gaza. REUTERS/Mohammed Salem (GAZA - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST ANNIVERSARY) - RTR39A0Z

Israel's failed prisoner release policies

Israel's policy of expelling released prisoners outside the West Bank has only encouraged them to resume terror activity.

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg speaks during a news conference at the NATO Foreign Minister's Meeting in Antalya, Turkey, May 13, 2015. NATO and Ukraine voiced concern on Wednesday about Russian statements on the possible future stationing of nuclear weapons in Ukraine's Crimea region, which has been annexed by Moscow. REUTERS/Kaan Soyturk - RTX1CTH4

Turkey needs to drop its dead-end foreign policy

Former diplomats say Ankara should act urgently with its NATO allies to face the new threats that have emerged to its security from groups like the Islamic State.