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

Turkey

Turkey

September 18, 2026

Ankara 3:28 pm

24°C

Traders work at their desks on the floor of the Borsa Istanbul

Turkey detains finance executives amid market turmoil

Several prominent Turkish finance executives were swept up by authorities on Thursday amid efforts to contain a market rout that has exposed strains in the country’s investment-fund industry.

Vyacheslav PROKOFYEV / AFP via Getty Images

Turkey's Erdogan to run for 'final' third term in 2028, adviser says

If Turkey's parliament votes to move the next election up during President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s second term, he could constitutionally run for third.

People swim next to the Russian-flagged cargo ship OMSKIY-107, which was attacked off the Black Sea coast and eventually ran aground off the shore of the Sile district, Istanbul, Sept. 3, 2026.

Why Turkey has few options to protect Black Sea shipping

The Russia-Ukraine drone war is hitting Turkish commercial interests, exposing the limits of Ankara’s ability to protect shipping while remaining outside the conflict.

Fighters loyal to the Houthi authorities gather during a rally to recruit more fighters in Sanaa on Sept. 10, 2026.

Analysis

Saudi Arabia's Houthi crisis tests alliances with Trump, Turkey and Pakistan

As the Houthis tighten their grip on the Bab al-Mandeb, Saudi Arabia is turning to new regional alliances while Washington resists calls to intervene.

Amberin Zaman

By Amberin Zaman

Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

Latest News

Turkey’s defense giants court Egypt at Alamein Airshow: What to know

El Alamein International Airshow

Russia to give Turkey preferential fertilizer access amid Hormuz supply crunch

In this pool photograph distributed by the Russian state agency Sputnik, Russia's President Vladimir Putin and Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan hold a meeting on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit in Bishkek on September 1, 2026. (Photo by Kristina Solovyova / POOL / 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

ISTANBUL, TURKEY - FEBRUARY 23: A man selling paintings packs up a print of Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan as he closes his stall for the day on February 23, 2017 in Istanbul, Turkey. Turkey will hold its constitutional referendum on April 16, 2017. Turks will vote on 18 proposed amendments to the Constitution of Turkey. The controversial changes seek to replace the parliamentary system and move to a presidential system which would give President Recep Tayyip Erdogan executive authority. Campaignin

Will Erdogan postpone upcoming referendum?

The postponement of the constitutional referendum planned for April 16 would not be a surprising outcome.

Rouhani says Iran opposed to incursions into Syria, Iraq

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan met to cool tensions after a recent war of words.

Turkish publisher Aydin Dogan holds the Victoria award during a ceremony at the Publishers Night in Berlin November 17, 2008. Dogan was awarded for his engagement in Germen Turkish integrations. REUTERS/Hannibal Hanschke (GERMANY) - RTXAP3D

Turkish media mogul in court after publishing controversial story

One day after Turkey's president blasted media mogul Aydin Dogan over a Hurriyet story he said sowed discord between the government and the armed forces, Dogan, who is also US President Donald Trump’s business partner, has been summoned to appear in court over fuel-smuggling accusations nearly a decade old.

A photo taken on July 20, 2016 shows a Turkish flag on the Istanbul Justice Palace (Adalet Sarayi).
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on July 20 chaired a crunch security meeting for the first time since the failed coup, as global alarm grew over a widening purge that has seen around 50,000 people either detained or sacked. / AFP / BULENT KILIC (Photo credit should read BULENT KILIC/AFP/Getty Images)

Turkish court upholds free speech … for Erdogan

A Turkish court has given sanction to public insults by the president against dissident academics, yet another omen of how subservient the Turkish judiciary has become.

Fighters of the Manbij military council, allied to Syria Democratic Forces (SDF), take an overwatch position in the southern rural area of Manbij, in Aleppo Governorate, Syria June 1, 2016. REUTERS/Rodi Said/File Photo - RTX2ONCT

Will Turkey attack Kurds in Manbij or move on to Raqqa?

Now that the Syrian army has blocked the road from al-Bab to Raqqa, Turkey may instead assault Manbij, which won’t be easy.

File Photo: Selahattin Demirtas, co-leader of the pro-Kurdish Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP), greets the crowd during a peace rally to protest against Turkish military operations in northern Syria, in Istanbul, Turkey, September 4, 2016. REUTERS/Osman Orsal/File Photo - RTX2RUA4

Turkey downplays Barzani's support for HDP

Now that Iraqi Kurdistan's president has left Istanbul, Turkey is denying reports that he had appealed to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to free several prominent Kurdish politicians from jail, probably because suggestions that Barzani was lobbying on behalf of Turkey's pro-Kurdish parties complicated Erdogan's efforts to woo Kurdish voters in the run-up to the April 16 referendum.

Fictional president falls victim to censorship in Turkey

A short comedy film becomes the latest victim of censorship in Turkey, as authorities seem to grow pricklier ahead of a critical plebiscite in April.

Supporters of the ruling AK Party wave Turkish flags during a campaign meeting for the April 16 constitutional referendum, in Ankara, Turkey, February 25, 2017. REUTERS/Umit Bektas - RTS108VN

Turkey's AKP scrambles to contain crisis ahead of key vote

Turkey’s government has enacted a series of economic measures to woo voters ahead of a key constitutional referendum, but the threat of the economic crisis is far from over.

Iraq's Kurdistan region's President Massoud Barzani (C) speaks during a news conference on the outskirts of Mosul, Iraq, October 17, 2016. REUTERS/Azad Lashkari - RTX2P71L

Barzani asks Erdogan to free pro-Kurdish detainees

In a meeting with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Iraqi Kurdistan Region President Masoud Barzani has called for Turkey to release political leader Selahattin Demirtas and other pro-Kurdish lawmakers.

Turkish soldiers accused of attempting to assassinate President Tayyip Erdogan on the night of the failed last year's July 15 coup, are escorted by gendarmes as they arrive for the first hearing of the trial in Mugla, Turkey, February 20, 2017. REUTERS/Kenan Gurbuz - RTSZGNP

Turkey coup defendants deny Gulen affiliation

The group trials have begun of soldiers charged in connection with the July coup, and although their defenses have varied, all have so far denied being followers of cleric Fethullah Gulen.

A supporter of the ruling AK Party holds a scarf that reads: "We are grandchildren of Ottoman. Recep Tayyip Erdogan." during a campaign meeting for the April 16 constitutional referendum, in Ankara, Turkey, February 25, 2017. REUTERS/Umit Bektas - RTS108WG

Why is Erdogan rushing into a referendum now?

While Turkey's economic and security vulnerabilities increase, Erdogan has run out of enemies to rally his base against for the April referendum.

Yahya Sinwar (C), the new leader of Hamas in the Gaza Strip, arrives for the opening of a new mosque in Rafah town in the southern Gaza Strip on February 24, 2017. / AFP / SAID KHATIB (Photo credit should read SAID KHATIB/AFP/Getty Images)

Iran pulls Palestine from the margins

The Iranian leadership turns out in force for Palestinian conference; Turkey’s victory in al-Bab may be a prelude to a showdown with the Syrian Kurds.