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Turkey

July 3, 2026

Ankara 1:21 am

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A screenshot of one of Deniz Goktas' standup routines posted to YouTube.

Culture

Turkish standup comic detained after act calling Erdogan 'dictator' goes viral

Comedian Deniz Goktas’ arrest comes as Ankara intensifies prosecutions against opposition figures, journalists, artists and critics ahead of a major NATO summit.

Somalia's President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud speaks during the launch of an offshore energy exploration at the port in Mogadishu on April 10, 2026.

Turkish jets strike al-Shabab targets in Somalia: What to know

A Somali Defense Ministry statement initially said Turkish F-16s carried out strikes on Al-Shabab targets before a later version referred only to “international partners.”

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.

KAREN MINASYAN / AFP via Getty Images

Turkey, Azerbaijan slam Israel’s Armenian genocide recognition as Yerevan mum

Ankara accused Israel of weaponizing history as Armenia avoided public comment amid delicate regional diplomacy.

Latest News

Analysis

Why Turkey and Egypt are deepening military ties amid regional turmoil

From (L-R) Pakistani Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar, Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty, Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan and Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan attend a meeting in Cairo on June 21, 2026.

Barin Kayaoglu

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

Explainer

Israel's Armenian genocide recognition marks new front against Turkey

Members of the Jerusalem Armenian community hold placards as they march during commemorations for the 94th anniversary of mass killings of their kin under the Ottoman Empire, Jerusalem's Old City, April 24, 2009.

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 piece of wreckage from a vehicle is seen at the site of Sunday's explosion in Nabi Osmane in the Bekaa Valley March 17, 2014. At least three people were killed when a suicide car bomber struck a Hezbollah stronghold in Lebanon's Bekaa Valley on Sunday in an apparent response to the fall of a rebel-held town to government forces across the border in Syria. A security source said two of the dead from the blast in Nabi Osmane were members of the Lebanese Shi'ite Muslim militant group Hezbollah whose fighters

What does the fall of Yabrud mean for Lebanon?

After the Syrian regime regained control of the rebel-held town of Yabrud this past weekend, some in Lebanon fear that the influx of extremist militants means more terrorist attacks inside the country.

Turkey's Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan addresses his supporters during an election rally of his ruling AK Party in Elazig March 6, 2014. Turkey will hold municipal elections on March 30. REUTERS/Umit Bektas (TURKEY - Tags: POLITICS ELECTIONS) - RTR3G491

AKP-Gulen strife worsens ahead of March 30 elections

While the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) may fear losing votes in upcoming local elections, the government can retaliate with its own legal campaign against the Gulen movement.

Turkey's Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan and President of Iraqi Kurdistan Masoud Barzani (R) attend a ceremony with Erdogan's wife Emine Erdogan in Diyarbakir November 16, 2013. The president of Iraqi Kurdistan called on Turkey's Kurds to back a flagging peace process with Ankara on Saturday, making his first visit to southeastern Turkey in two decades in a show of support for Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan. Barzani's trip to Diyarbakir, the main city in Turkey's Kurdish-dominated southeast, comes as Ankara fi

Iraqi Kurds fear fallout from Erdogan-Gulen conflict

Some Iraqi Kurds are worried that the potential fall of Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan might result in a reversal of good relations between Erbil and Ankara.

Turkey's Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan addresses the crowd during an opening ceremony of a new metro line in Ankara March 13, 2014. A defiant Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan, already battling a damaging corruption scandal weeks ahead of elections, cast the latest unrest as part of a plot against the state. REUTERS/Umit Bektas (TURKEY - Tags: POLITICS TRANSPORT CIVIL UNREST) - RTR3GWD4

Will Erdogan apologize to Turkey's Shiites?

Turkey’s high political tensions finally engulfed the Turkish Shiites (Jaafaris) who are furious with Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan for calling Shiites “liars, slanderers and hate mongers.”

Turkey's Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu (R) and Secretary-General of Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Dmitry Mezentsev show signed documents granting Turkey a partner status in SCO, in Almaty April 26, 2013. REUTERS/Shamil Zhumatov (KAZAKHSTAN - Tags: POLITICS BUSINESS) - RTXZ0S8

Erdogan turns East

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has tired of joining Europe, and aspires to "Putinize" Turkey not only by veering toward Muslim Asia but also by joining the Shanghai Cooperation Organization.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry (R) shakes hands with Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov before their meeting at Winfield House, the home of the U.S. ambassador in London March 14, 2014. The United States and Russia will find it formidably difficult to make progress on Ukraine at talks in London today, British Foreign Minister William Hague said on Friday. REUTERS/Brendan Smialowski/pool (BRITAIN - Tags: POLITICS TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY) - RTR3H3AB

Al-Monitor Congress Pulse expands Syria, Russia-Ukraine-Mideast coverage

Congress Pulse and "Trendlines" delve into the implications of Ukraine for US policy in the Middle East.

Russian President Vladimir Putin (R) meets with Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif in Moscow's Kremlin January 16, 2014. REUTERS/Sergei Karpukhin (RUSSIA - Tags: POLITICS) - RTX17GFB

Iran weighs 'active neutrality' in Ukraine

Iran’s strategic priorities remain a comprehensive nuclear agreement and a political solution in Syria.

A statue of modern Turkey's founder Ataturk and a mosque in the background are pictured in a square where Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan (not pictured) is to attend an election rally of his of ruling AK Party (AKP) in Kirikkale, central Turkey March 4, 2014. Turkey will hold municipal election on March 30. REUTERS/Umit Bektas (TURKEY - Tags: POLITICS ELECTIONS TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY) - RTR3G17X

The fading Turkish model for the Arab world

Allegations of corruption against the government of Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan is undermining what little support may still remain across the Middle East.

Smoke rises at the Karaj al-Hajez crossing, a passageway separating Aleppo's Bustan al-Qasr, which is under the rebels' control and Al-Masharqa neighbourhood, an area controlled by the regime March 13, 2014. REUTERS/Sultan Ketaz (SYRIA - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST CONFLICT) - RTR3GZNW

Pro-regime Sunni fighters in Aleppo defy sectarian narrative

Pro-regime militias such as the Al-Quds and Baath Brigades are at the forefront of the battle against rebels in Aleppo, and they're mostly Sunni.

A Palestinian girl walks past a monument of a homemade M75 rocket in the middle of a square in Gaza City March 10, 2014. Hamas fired M75 rockets at Tel Aviv and Jerusalem in the 2012 eight-day fighting with Israel. REUTERS/Mohammed Salem (GAZA - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST) - RTR3GEHZ

Hamas trapped between Israel, Islamic Jihad

While committed to keeping a quiet border with Israel, Hamas leaders fear the alliance between Iran and Islamic Jihad, and prefer Israel’s wrath to Iran’s anger.

A member of the Asayish carries his weapon as he secures the area hit by a suicide bombing on Saturday at the Kurdish Security Forces Center (Asayish) at the Suez Canal neighbourhood in Qamishli November 25, 2013. The al-Qaeda linked Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant have claimed responsibility for the bombing which killed three people, including two members of the Asayish police force, and nine others wounded, activists said. Picture taken November 25, 2013. REUTERS/Rodi Said (SYRIA - Tags: POLITICS CIV

ISIS suicide attacks target Syrian Kurdish capital

The Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS) is increasing its terror campaign against Kurds in northern Syria.

Istanbul's financial district, Levent district, which comprises of leading Turkish companies' headquarters and popular shopping malls, is seen from the observation deck of Sapphire Tower in Istanbul January 30, 2012. The 261 metres high (285.4 yards) Sapphire Tower of Istanbul is the country's highest building. Picture was taken through glass. REUTERS/Murad Sezer (TURKEY - Tags: CITYSPACE BUSINESS) - RTR2X2RP

The AKP’s failed urban strategy

The Justice and Development Party’s municipal strategy emphasizing large-scale construction projects and urban transformation may be clashing with its focus on conservative values.