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Turkey

August 26, 2026

Ankara 3:02 am

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Top EU court says Kavala case exposes erosion of judicial independence in Turkey

Europe's top human rights court has renewed its call for Turkey to immediately release jailed philanthropist Osman Kavala, saying his imprisonment reflects a broader “systemic problem” over independence and impartiality of the judiciary.

Equality and Democracy Party lawmakers

Explainer

Turkey’s Kurdish peace process moves to implementation: What to know and what’s next

Turkey’s peace process with Kurdish militants has entered the implementation phase this week, with authorities setting up working groups to verify the Kurdistan Workers Party’s disarmament.

Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani (C) watches as US special envoy for Syria Tom Barrack prepares to sign an agreement in Damascus on September 16, 2025. Shaibani announced on September 16 a plan backed by Jordan and the United States to restore calm to Druze-majority Sweida province, which witnessed deadly violence in July. (Photo by LOUAI BESHARA / AFP) (Photo by LOUAI BESHARA/AFP via Getty Images)

Exclusive

Israel recalibrates Syria policy, explores path to security deal

Israel is rethinking its hard-line Syria policy and seeking to repair ties with US envoy and Donald Trump's confidant Tom Barrack amid a push for a security agreement with Damascus.

In Tel Aviv, reporting on national security, Israeli politics, defense

Latest News

Analysis

Why Turkey sees Israeli strikes in Syria as warning over its military role, Mecca Pact

A Turkish soldier from the 1st Border Regiment Command looks out over the border wall to Syria during alert drills at a military outpost on the Turkey/Syria border on March 2, 2017 in Kilis, Turkey.

Barin Kayaoglu

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

Analysis

Turkey bets on US deconfliction as Israel widens Syria red lines

Turkey/Syria border

Ezgi Akin

Rina Bassist

By Ezgi Akin , Rina Bassist

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

(FromL) Turkish Justice Minister Abdulhamit Gul, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu, Treasury and Finance Minister Berat Albayrak and Turkish Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu give a press conference after a "Reform Action Group" meeting held by the Presidency of the European Union at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Ankara on August 29, 2018. (Photo by ADEM ALTAN / AFP) (Photo credit should read ADEM ALTAN/AFP/Getty Images)

Doubts surround Turkey’s efforts to revive its EU membership bid

A Western diplomat says Ankara is unlikely to enact democratic reforms that would ease President Erdogan’s grip on power.

Turkish military’s tradition of secularism facing tough test

A recent controversy over who should lead prayers at mosques and prayer halls in military facilities shows the Turkish military is still a long way from striking a true balance between religious freedom and freedom from religion.

ISTANBUL, TURKEY - AUGUST 29: People wait to change money at a currency exchange office in front of the underconstruction, Taksim Square Mosque on August 29, 2018 in Istanbul, Turkey. Turkey's lira extended its slump to a third day to 6.45 against the dollar after the central bank announced it would alter Turkish banks borrowing limits on overnight transactions, the move failed to reassure investors and combined with the decision by ratings agency Moody's to downgrade the credit rating of twenty Turkish fi

Top Turkish bank official resigns as lira drops further

A deputy governor of Turkey's Central Bank quit suddenly today as the lira took yet another tumble.

Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif steps down from his plane on his arrival in Noor Khan airbase in Rawalpindi on August 30, 2018. - Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif arrived in Islamabad for a two-day visit. (Photo by - / AFP) (Photo credit should read -/AFP/Getty Images)

Zarif: Even America’s allies not immune to US sanctions

During an unannounced trip to Turkey, Iran’s foreign minister warned America’s allies that they are not immune to US pressure.

FBI says Ankara's Iran sanction-busting woes not over

When a US federal agent spoke publicly about the investigation into a Turkish-Iranian sanctions-busting scheme and verified rumors that Turkey had tried to get the defendants freed, she confirmed Ankara's fear that more fallout from the scandal is still to come.

A stray cat sleeps over books as he shades at a second hand book store during a hot summer day in down town Istanbul June 26, 2009. REUTERS/Murad Sezer (TURKEY SOCIETY) FOR BEST QUALITY IMAGE ALSO SEE: GM1E83E1J6T01 - GM1E56R0GPG01

Turkish millennials seek their own literary heroes

Millennials and post-millennials read differently than their elders, as they are faster in skimming, better in sharing and interested in interactive literary works.

A barber works inside his shop on the southern outskirts of the Syrian city of al-Bab, Syria September 15, 2017. Picture taken September 15, 2017. REUTERS/Khalil Ashawi - RC11D33413A0

Turkey connecting Syria's al-Bab to its power supply

Turkey's State Electricity Generating Company has been awarded the contract to supply al-Bab, in northern Syria, with electricity.

Two U.S. Air Force F-22 stealth fighter jets are about to receive fuel mid-air from a KC-135 refueling plane over Norway en route to a joint training exercise with Norway's growing fleet of F-35 jets August 15, 2018. REUTERS/Andrea Shalal - RC1BFCD5DE40

US offer of F-35s falls flat as Turkey clings to Russian missiles

A delegation of US Congress members has failed to convince Ankara to give up on acquiring its Russian missile defense system in return for fulfillment of its order of American fighter jets.

A Turkish flag is seen at a Turkish observation point in Idlib province, Syria July 30, 2018. Picture taken July 30, 2018. REUTERS/ Khalil Ashawi - RC18A7B6A310

Will Turkey’s 'strategic partnership' with Russia cover Idlib?

Ankara is looking to Moscow to prevent an attack on Idlib by the Russian-supported Syrian army.

Presidents Hassan Rouhani of Iran, Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey and Vladimir Putin of Russia hold a joint news conference after their meeting in Ankara, Turkey April 4, 2018. REUTERS/Umit Bektas - RC1E49CD8120

Erdogan set to meet Putin, Rouhani in Iran to weigh options on Syria

Turkey, Iran and Russia are set to hold a three-way summit in September in Iran, where Erdogan will likely renew pleas for more time to work out a deal separating the “moderates” from the “terrorists” in Syria's Idlib.

People walk past by a kiosk in central Istanbul, Turkey November 2, 2015. A jubilant President Tayyip Erdogan on Monday cast the return of Turkey's Islamist-rooted AK Party to single-party rule as a vote for stability that the world must respect, but opponents fear it heralds growing authoritarianism and deeper polarisation. The newspaper headline on top reads: "AK Party on its own" REUTERS/Murad Sezer - GF20000042993

How crisis with US dealt fresh blow to Turkish press

The depreciation of the Turkish lira, fueled by the crisis between Ankara and Washington, has raised the cost of imported paper enormously, pushing already-struggling publications to the brink of collapse.

Russia shows no signs of ditching Iran over Syria

Turkey rallies jihadi armed groups to its side in Idlib; Lebanon backs Russian plan for Syrian refugees.