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Turkey

Turkey

July 16, 2026

Ankara 5:00 pm

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Ozgu Ozel

Turkish opposition leader Ozgur Ozel could launch new party by August

Ozgur Ozel’s remarks on a potential new party came as the legal crackdown on the main opposition widened further this week with the arrest and suspension of the mayor of Cankaya, one of the party’s most secure and symbolically important strongholds in the heart of Ankara.

Visitors stand inside Hagia Sophia Grand Mosque in Istanbul on April 14, 2025.

Russian couple faces deportation from Turkey after Bible reading at Hagia Sophia

The couple were detained after reading from the Bible inside the Istanbul landmark, which remains one of Christianity’s most important historic sites despite its conversion into a mosque.

Latest News

Turkey, Egypt expand military ties with cooperation frameworks: What to know

Turkish Defense Minister Yasar Guler and his Egyptian counterpart, Lt. Gen. Ashraf Salem Zaher, met at the Turkey’s Defense Ministry in Ankara, July 13, 2026.

Analysis

From S-400s to SAMP/T: Turkey’s defense pivot gathers pace after NATO summit

Britain's Prime Minister Keir Starmer (L) and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan pose after signing a defense partnership agreement on the sidelines of the NATO summit in Ankara, Turkey, Wednesday, July 8, 2026.

Barin Kayaoglu

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

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

US President Donald Trump (3L), US First lady Melania Trump (2L), Saudi Arabia's King Salman bin Abdulaziz al-Saud (C), and Egypt's President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi (3R) pose for a group photo with other leaders of the Muslim world during the inauguration of the Global Center for Combating Extremist Ideology in Riyadh on May 21, 2017. / AFP PHOTO / MANDEL NGAN (Photo credit should read MANDEL NGAN/AFP via Getty Images)

Four must-read books on Trump’s Middle East policies

What we learned from Michael Wolff, John Bolton and Bob Woodward about the Trump administration and the Middle East.

ISTANBUL, TURKEY - JULY 29: Detail as a man counts Turkish Lira at a currency exchange office on July 29, 2020 in Istanbul, Turkey. The Turkish Lira remains under pressure after briefly trading at a record low against the euro of 8.17 on Tuesday amid investor concerns around Turkey's foreign denomination debt and potential EU sanctions. (Photo by Chris McGrath/Getty Images)

Is the worst behind in Turkey’s economic turmoil?

Ankara’s policy reversal on interest rates has led to some positive developments in the economy, but many observers warn that it is still too early to rejoice.

Egypt works to alter Turkey's Libya road map

The first official visit from Egypt to Libya's internationally recognized Tripoli government aims to prevent a possible military push against strategic Sirte under the control of the rival group.

Turkish Foreign minister Mevlut Cavusoglu gives a press conference with his Hungarian counterpart following their meeting in Ankara, on December 8, 2020. (Photo by Adem ALTAN / AFP) (Photo by ADEM ALTAN/AFP via Getty Images)

State Department denies forming group with Turkey on CAATSA sanctions

After Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu claimed that Ankara and the Washington were setting up a working group on US sanctions on Turkey, a State Department spokesperson denied the existence of any such body.

Turkey plays role in livestreaming of northern Syria soccer

With the support of Turkey, a Syrian soccer tournament is being broadcast live on the internet, pushing many to follow the games, and advancing the sports sector in the area.

People, among them representatives of some of European countries' embassies, arrive at a court on December 18, 2020 in Istanbul to attend a hearing in the trial of jailed Turkish businessman and philanthropist Osman Kavala, on charges connected with a failed coup in 2016. - A Turkish court ordered civil society leader Osman Kavala to remain in jail pending trial on charges that rights groups say are part of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's bid to stifle dissent. The presiding judge rejected a defence reques

Top Turkish court rejects appeal for release of philanthropist Kavala

Turkey’s Constitutional Court has rejected an appeal for the release of philanthropist Osman Kavala, ruling his more than three-year imprisonment without conviction did not violate his rights in contradiction to rulings by the European Court of Human Rights.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan addresses a protest rally in Istanbul on May 18, 2018, against the recent killings of Palestinian protesters on the Gaza-Israel border and the US embassy move to Jerusalem. (Photo by OZAN KOSE / AFP) (Photo by OZAN KOSE/AFP via Getty Images)

Israel spurns Turkish bid to improve ties

In the past few weeks, Ankara has made several overtures toward rapprochement with Israel, yet Jerusalem seems to be waiting for something solid.

A container ship sails to marmara sea on December 18, 2019 in Istanbul. (Photo by Ozan KOSE / AFP) (Photo by OZAN KOSE/AFP via Getty Images)

Erdogan hails 'new phase' in Turkey-UK ties with trade agreement

Turkey and the United Kingdom's increasing discord with the European Union make them natural partners.

A Russian Mil Mi-17 military helicopter flies by a soldier during a joint Russian-Turkish patrol convoy in the eastern countryside of the town of Darbasiyah near the border with Turkey in Syria's northeastern Hasakah province on December 7, 2020. (Photo by Delil SOULEIMAN / AFP) (Photo by DELIL SOULEIMAN/AFP via Getty Images)

Turkey sticks to its guns on Russian S-400s despite US sanctions

Voices are growing louder in Turkey questioning why these systems were ever purchased, considering the headaches they have caused for Ankara.

Turkish journalist sentenced to prison over report on Turkey sending weapons to Syria

Can Dundar was tried in absentia. The now Germany-based journalist reported on Turkish support for Syrian rebel groups in 2015, which angered President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

New draft law seeks to paralyze Turkish civil society

Groups across the ideological spectrum say the law, aimed at keeping Turkey from being blacklisted by the international money laundering watchdog, includes articles that will severely hamper their work.

Erdogan blasts European court's ruling on jailed Kurdish leader

The European Court of Human Rights said the imprisonment of Selahattin Demirtas had violated his basic rights.