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Turkey

Turkey

November 4, 2026

Ankara 3:27 pm

14°C

Turkey probes Google’s AI search tools, orders protections for news websites

Turkey’s competition watchdog said it is assessing whether AI-generated answers appearing on Google Search divert traffic from news sites and impose unfair content-use terms.

A protestor holds a flag bearing a portrait of jailed leader of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) Abdullah Ocalan during a demonstration of Kurdish people from all around Europe to mark the 27th anniversary of his arrest and to demand his liberation, in Strasbourg, Eastern France, on Feb. 14, 2026.

Turkey moves PKK leader Ocalan to prison villa as peace process faces new test

The move is expected to give the PKK leader a more direct role in negotiations, but deep divisions over disarmament and Kurdish rights continue to threaten the process.

OSCE Secretary General Feridun Sinirlioglu is pictured during a joint press conference with the OSCE Chairman-in-Office, Switzerland's Foreign Minister at Vienna International Airport on Feb. 6, 2026 in Schwechat, Lower Austria.

Explainer

Who is Feridun Sinirlioglu, Turkey’s candidate for UN chief?

The Turkish president's confidant enters the race for UN chief with decades of diplomatic experience marked by both praise and scrutiny.

Demonstrators hold a banner reading "Free Gaza, free world"

Analysis

Gaza progress, Syria pullback: What Turkey wants from Israel’s next government

Ankara sees room for limited improvement in ties if Israel’s next government eases Gaza’s humanitarian crisis and reduces military pressure on Syria.

Barin Kayaoglu

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

Latest News

Explainer

After EU rebuff, how Turkey is courting Egypt for maritime deal

Turkish Navy sailors wave their caps from the flight deck

Culture

Rock collapse near UNESCO-listed site in Turkey’s Cappadocia kills three

An view of the Uchisar settlement, east of Nevesehir in the province of the same name in central Turkey's historical Cappadocia region on Aug. 24, 2022.

Tornado kills 4 in Turkey’s Mediterranean tourism hub Antalya

Kepez

Saudi Arabia’s KBS, top Turkish and Pakistani officials hold rare meeting in Iran: What to know

GEOFFROY VAN DER HASSELT/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

Palestinian women watch their neighbours as they bake bread in a clay oven inside their dwelling in Beit Lahiya, near the border between Israel and northern Gaza Strip April 7, 2013. REUTERS/Mohammed Salem (GAZA - Tags: SOCIETY POVERTY) - RTXYC6N

Gaza's Extreme Poor Face Social Stigma

Already humiliated for relying on UN food rations, Gaza's extreme poor also find themselves ostracized from other parts of society.

Riot police officers run after demonstrators on Istiklal Street in central Istanbul July 13, 2013. Turkish police fired water cannon and tear gas on Saturday to disperse hundreds of protesters who gathered to march to Gezi Park, which has been at the heart of fierce unrest against Prime Minister Erdogan's rule. Protesters scattered, running into sidestreets where police pursued them, before starting to regroup on Istiklal Street, metres from the main Taksim Square. REUTERS/Umit Bektas (TURKEY - Tags: POLITI

Turkey's 'Massive' Rights Crimes At Gezi Protests Cited by Amnesty

In a detailed study on Turkey's recent urban unrest, the international human rights body Amnesty International reports widespread abuse by authorities.

Turkish Parliament convene for a debate after a summer recess in Ankara October 1, 2013. REUTERS/Umit Bektas (TURKEY - Tags: POLITICS) - RTR3FH3D

The Democratization Package That Missed the Point

Ersan Sen, a well-known lawyer, argues that the government’s democratization package missed the point because it did not offer any changes to political parties or the election law put into effect after the 1980 military coup.

Why Are 700 Greeks Praying In a Turkish Hotel?

Despite the Turkish government’s drive to renovate ancient churches, many religious shrines remain off-limits to Turkey’s non-Muslim communities.

Palestinian protesters throw stones at Israeli security forces during clashes in the West Bank city of Hebron September 27, 2013. Israeli police clashed with Palestinian protesters in Jerusalem's Old City, the Gaza Strip and the occupied West Bank on Friday, reflecting growing tensions over an increase in Jewish visits to the al-Aqsa mosque. REUTERS/Mussa Qawasma (WEST BANK - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST RELIGION) - RTX1426K

Volatile Hebron Could Derail Talks

Riddled with Israeli checkpoints and neglected by the Palestinian Authority, Hebron is a powder keg that could explode at any moment.

Pro-Kurdish Peace and Democracy Party (BDP) co-leader Gultan Kisanak listens to a question during an interview with Reuters in Ankara October 1, 2013. Turkey on Monday announced reforms seen as designed to salvage a peace process with Kurdish insurgents, including changes to the electoral system, broadening of language rights and permission for villages to to use their original Kurdish names. BDP said the proposals, presented by Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan, were not enough to satisfy Kurdish militants who

Mysterious Reform Package Disappoints Turks

The Turkish prime minister’s reform package has gotten mixed reactions.

Turkey’s Choice of Chinese Missiles Poses Problem for West

Washington is upset by Prime Minister Erdogan’s decision to enter into negotiations to purchase an air-defense system from a Chinese state company under sanctions by the United States.

People watch a television broadcasting the speech of Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan at a coffee shop in Istanbul September 30, 2013. Turkey may reduce the threshold for a political party to enter parliament to 5 percent of the national vote, or even eliminate the barrier completely, Erdogan said on Monday. The current 10 percent threshold has kept pro-Kurdish groupings outside of parliament and a reform that may help advance a flagging peace process with Kurdish militants. In a major policy speech, E

Will 'Democratization Package' Restore Erdogan’s Reputation?

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s democratization package should help Turkey’s international standing, as long as it is implemented correctly.

Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan addresses the media in Ankara September 30, 2013. Turkey will end a ban that bars women from wearing the Islamic-style headscarf in state institutions, part of the government's long-awaited package of proposed human-rights reforms, Erdogan said on Monday in a major policy speech. The new rules will not apply to the judiciary or the military. Muslim but secular Turkey has long had tough restrictions on the garb worn by women working in state offices. Erdogan also announc

Erdogan's Democratization Package A 'Silent Revolution'

Prime Minister Recep Tayyep Erdogan considers his democratization proposal essential to Turkey’s role as a democratic and free society.

Turkey's Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan addresses members of parliament from his ruling AK Party (AKP) during a meeting at the Turkish parliament in Ankara June 11, 2013. Erdogan called on protesters to withdraw from central Istanbul's Gezi Park on Tuesday and said the anti-government demonstrations were part of a deliberate attempt to damage Turkey's image and economy. REUTERS/Umit Bektas (TURKEY - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST) - RTX10JI0

Turkey Polls Oppose AKP Once Again

The Justice and Development Party (AKP) risks being labeled an “elitist” party, ignoring the preferences of its voters in foreign policy.

Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan waves as he leaves a news conference in Ankara September 30, 2013. Turkey will end a ban that bars women from wearing the Islamic-style headscarf in state institutions, part of the government's long-awaited package of proposed human-rights reforms, Erdogan said on Monday in a major policy speech. The new rules will not apply to the judiciary or the military. Muslim but secular Turkey has long had tough restrictions on the garb worn by women working in state offices. Erd

What Does Erdogan’s Democratization Package Offer Kurds, Minorities?

Will the democratization package solve Turkey’s key issues?

Iran and Turkey Have DifferencesOn Syria, But Not a Crisis

Iran's ambassador in Ankara, Alireza Bikdeli, says if the Iranian and Turkish differences on Syria were between two other countries, it would have led to serious problems.