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Turkey

Turkey

August 28, 2026

Ankara 3:50 am

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Top European 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

Iraq's Kurdistan region's President Massoud Barzani gestures during a joint news conference with German Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel (not pictured) in Erbil, Iraq April 20, 2017. REUTERS/Azad Lashkari - RTS1348S

KRG not concerned by Turkey's reactions to independence vote

Although Kurdistan Regional Government officials are optimistic about the Turkish government's ultimate position on the independence referendum, the Turkish president's recent remarks say differently.

Mehmet Gormez, head of Turkey's Religious Affairs Directorate, addresses the media in Ankara January 8, 2015. REUTERS/Umit Bektas (TURKEY - Tags: POLITICS RELIGION) - RTR4KMRF

Why Erdogan fired Turkey’s top cleric

The departure of Mehmet Gormez, who headed Turkey's Directorate of Religious Affairs (Diyanet), had many wondering if he was not loyal enough to the Turkish president.

Turkey's Prime Minister Binali Yildirim (R), flanked by Chief of Staff General Hulusi Akar (L) and the country's top generals, leaves Anitkabir, the mausoleum of modern Turkey founder Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, after a wreath-laying ceremony ahead of a High Military Council meeting in Ankara, Turkey, July 28, 2016. REUTERS/Umit Bektas - RTSK1K6

Turkey tells a story with major military personnel moves

Turkey's military council made some surprise decisions this week that provide insight into the president's re-election strategy.

TAL ABYAD, SYRIA - JUNE 19: (TURKEY OUT) A Kurdish People's Protection Units, or YPG fighter controls the weapons in downtown of Tal Abyad, Syria. June 19, 2015. Kurdish fighters with the YPG took full control of Tal Abyad, dealing a major blow to the Islamic State group's ability to wage war in Syria. Mopping up operations have started to make the town safe for the return of residents from Turkey, after more than a year of Islamic State militants holding control of the town. (Photo by Ahmet Sik/Getty Image

US pushes back on Turkish media claims about Syrian Kurds

US Embassy in Ankara refutes fevered claims about aid deliveries to Syrian Kurds.

A South Korean tourist (R) takes a selfie as she visits the Ottoman-era Sultanahmet mosque, also known as the Blue Mosque, in Istanbul, Turkey, June 10, 2016. REUTERS/Murad Sezer - RTSGWZG

Tourism report signals wider issues for women in Turkey

Turks are angry about Forbes magazine's story that listed Turkey as being a dangerous destination for women traveling alone, but do they have cause?

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan and Chief of Staff General Hulusi Akar chat as they attend the funeral of Major General Aydogan Aydin who was killed in a helicopter crash in Sirnak, on Wednesday, at Ahmet Hamdi Akseki Mosque in Ankara, Turkey, June 1, 2017. REUTERS/Umit Bektas TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY - RTX38KLG

Heads roll at top of Turkey's military

The Turkish government reshuffled the top echelons of the military as the trial of more than 500 alleged coup plotters got underway.

Turkey's cyclists bike for a cause

In Turkey, bicycling is not only a means of transport and leisure but also, for one group, of social activism.

Brett McGurk (C), US special Presidential Envoy for the Global Coalition to Counter IS, and Rupert Jones (L), deputy commander of Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve (CJTF-OIR), arrive for a meeting with the Tabqa Civil Council in the town of Tabqa, about 55 kilometres (35 miles) west of Raqa city, on June 29, 2017. / AFP PHOTO / DELIL SOULEIMAN (Photo credit should read DELIL SOULEIMAN/AFP/Getty Images)

Turkey in uproar over McGurk

The Turkish media's outlandish attacks on US envoy Brett McGurk hint at the anxiety in Ankara over US relations with Syrian Kurds.

Germany's patience with Erdogan may be running out

The latest moves by the German government against Turkey suggest Germany's patience with President Erdogan may have run its course.

Clouds gather over Turkish-German economic ties

Exasperated over Turkey’s disregard for the rule of law and its arrest of German nationals, Berlin has raised the specter of economic sanctions against Turkey.

Internally displaced people who fled Raqqa city ride a vehicle with their belongings in a camp near Ain Issa, Raqqa Governorate, Syria May 19, 2017. Picture taken May 19, 2017. REUTERS/Rodi Said - RTX36QES

Syrian regime says it's time for the displaced to return

Hundreds of people displaced from al-Waer neighborhood in Homs, Syria, have now left the Zoghra camp outside of Aleppo and returned to the regime-controlled Homs.

Brett McGurk, U.S. envoy to the coalition against Islamic State, speaks during a news conference at the U.S. Embassy in Amman, Jordan, November 6, 2016. REUTERS/Muhammad Hamed - RTX2S6NC

Ankara decries ‘provocative’ remarks by US anti-IS envoy

Turkey continues to be concerned about the relationship between the United States and the Syrian Kurds.