Nimet Kirac

Nimet Kirac is a freelance journalist based in Turkey's southern province of Adana. A graduate of George Washington University, she started her career in journalism at CNN International Headquarters in Atlanta. Her work has been published by the Financial Times, Le Figaro and Euronews among other global news outlets. She is a New York Times contributing reporter and a correspondent at large for Gazete Oksijen. On Twitter: @nimetkirac

Turkey | Jan 27, 2023

Turkey's medicine shortages could turn into 'drug famine' with no end in sight

In all Turkish pharmacies Al-Monitor visited recently, the drug shortage was palpable. Children's medicines, antibiotics, some cancer drugs top Turkey's long-unavailable drug list.

An employee takes a box of medicines on shelves at a pharmacy in the Turkish capital Ankara on December 13, 2021. - Turkeys pharmacists have brought to light the struggle of many patients who need medicines to treat diseases like diabetes and childrens fevers but cannot find them. They say the crisis that has deteriorated because of the fall in the Turkish liras value. (Photo by ADEM ALTAN/AFP via Getty Images)

Turkey | Nov 23, 2022

Deepening poverty fuels mass school dropout in Turkey

Children are dropping out of school at unprecedented rates in Turkey, activists warn, as the social toll of the country’s economic turmoil deepens.

Seyit, an 8-year-old Kurdish garbage collector, carries flattened cardboard boxes in Istanbul on Sept. 12, 2022.

Turkey | Feb 21, 2020

Turkey’s language activists keep Armenian dialect alive in music, literature

Cultural activists are struggling to keep Homshetsi, a western Armenian dialect spoken in northern Turkey, alive through music and literature.

Turkey | Jun 19, 2019

Istanbul’s last gramophone repairman keeps records turning

The last gramophone specialist in Istanbul works contentedly in his tiny shop inside the Grand Bazaar, a perfect escape from modern consumerist culture.

Turkey | May 24, 2019

Whispers become tweets as Turkish artists speak out against AKP

Turkish artists, authors and entertainers have begun openly expressing their political views after years of silence, angered by the Istanbul election turmoil and encouraged by the winning opposition candidate to speak up.

Turkey | Apr 19, 2019

Dog killings in Turkey's capital show poor lawmaking

The recent killing of dogs in Ankara has once again shed light on Turkey's inefficient animal rights laws, which identify strays as "property" instead of "living beings."

A dog drinks water on Lake Eymir in Ankara on January 17, 2019. (Photo by Adem ALTAN / AFP) (Photo credit should read ADEM ALTAN/AFP/Getty Images)

Turkey | Apr 9, 2019

Turkey's Orange Blossom Carnival blooms despite economic, political woes

Orange Blossom Carnival is Turkey’s first and only street carnival, which in its seventh year attracted over 250,000 visitors to southern Adana province over the weekend, all for the love of color.

Turkey | Apr 3, 2019

Turkey’s state-run news agency under fire for irregular poll coverage

Turkey’s state-run Anadolu Agency is under fire for its bizarre coverage of the Istanbul mayoral race, during which the agency stopped reporting polling results when it became clear the opposition was bound for victory.

Turkey | Feb 25, 2019

Veganism wins hearts, minds in meat-loving Istanbul

Vegan shops are springing up across Istanbul, and many curious Turks are learning to make revamp their traditional meat, egg and dairy-based dishes.

Turkey | Jan 10, 2019

Rumi’s message of tolerance calls thousands to Konya centuries on

More than seven centuries after his death, Mawlana Jalal-ud-din Rumi’s message draws visitors from different religions, nationalities and races to his shrine in central Anatolia.