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

Turkey

Turkey

November 7, 2026

Ankara 5:05 am

4°C

Costa Rica's Grynspan extends lead in UNSG poll as Nusseibeh places fourth

The Costa Rican candidate received 12 encourage votes in Thursday's UN Security Council straw poll.

United Arab Emirates

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan addresses Turkish members of parliament during the opening of the parliamentary session at the Grand National Assembly of Turkey in Ankara, on Oct. 1, 2026.

Turkey’s parliament ratifies Mecca pact in boost to Saudi Arabia

Turkey will now decide the scope of military support for Saudi Arabia amid ongoing Iran-backed Houthi attacks on the kingdom.

TOFIK BABAYEV/AFP via Getty Images

Can Erdogan’s Baku visit fix Turkey-Azerbaijan rift?

A dispute over religious dress in schools has exposed deeper tensions between the two allies, with energy, arms sales, Israel and financial interests adding to the strain.

Latest News

Turkey says soldier killed by gunfire from Iran at border: What to know

A sign marking the border of Turkey in Van, Turkey, on March 14, 2026.

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

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

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.

Explainer

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

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.

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

Turkish Shi'ite women shout Islamic slogans as they mourn during an Ashura procession in Istanbul November 24, 2012. Muslims all over the world mourn the slaying of Imam Hussein during the first ten days of the Islamic month of Muharram. Imam Hussein was killed by his political rivals along with 72 companions in the seventh century battle of Kerbala. REUTERS/Murad Sezer (TURKEY - Tags: ANNIVERSARY RELIGION CIVIL UNREST)

Turkey's Sectarian War With Iran Over Syria and Iraq

Semih Idiz examines the evolution of the sectarian conflict between Turkey and Iran over Iraq and Syria.

A man looks at portraits of people who were executed, disappeared or died in jail during military rule after a 1980 coup, as protesters demonstrate in front of a courthouse in Ankara April 4, 2012. Thousands of mainly leftist protesters gathered outside the court, waving flags and shouting slogans demanding justice and the prosecution of more than just the coup ring-leaders. More than 30 years after the September 12, 1980 military takeover, an Ankara court began hearing the case against 94-year-old Retired

Trial Is Latest Round In AKP Attack on Military

Tulin Daloglu writes that the current trial of former military leaders is another sign that the AKP’s democratization agenda is really about curtailing any threat from the military.

Turkish people look on and record with phones members of the Free Syrian Army gathering as gunfire is heard between them and the armed Kurds of The Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD) in the northern Syrian town of Ras al-Ain, November 25, 2012. Iran said Turkey's plans to deploy Patriot defensive missiles near its border with Syria would add to the region's problems, as fears grow of the Syrian civil war spilling across frontiers. REUTERS/Amr Abdallah Dalsh (TURKEY - Tags: POLITICS CONFLICT)

The Third Front in Turkey's 'Kurdish Problem'

Kadri Gursel writes that Turkey may be supporting Salafi groups in northern Syria to prevent a third Kurdish front.

Syrian Kurds demonstrators hold a giant portrait of jailed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) leader Abdullah Ocalan during a protest in Derik, Hasakah November 1, 2012. Around 1,000 Syrian Kurds protested in the north-eastern Syrian town of Derik on Thursday, demanding the re-opening of Kurdish-language schools they said were closed by President's Bashar al-Assad's regime. REUTERS/Thaier al-Sudani (SYRIA - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST CONFLICT EDUCATION)

Turkey Considers New 'Peace Process’ With PKK

Mustafa Akyol analyzes the prospects for a new peace process using imprisoned PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan, an approach that failed two years ago.

Members of parliament from the ruling AK Party (AKP) and Republican People's Party (CHP) scuffle during a debate at the parliament in Ankara early March 30, 2012. The Turkish parliament is hotly debating a bill overturning a 1997 law, imposed with the backing of the military, which extended compulsory education to eight from five years and stopped under-15s attending religious "imam hatip" schools. Parliamentarians on Thursday accepted a proposal from Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan's AK Party to offer option

The Coming Political Crisis in Turkey

Cengiz Çandar foresees a political crisis in this year as Prime Minister Recep Erdogan's ruling AKP party pushes a draft constitution that would dramatically expand his powers.

Foreign Ministers Hoshiyar Zebari of Iraq, Walid al-Moualem of Syria and Ahmet Davutoglu of Turkey, and Secretary General of the Arab League Amr Moussa (R) chat before their meeting at the Ottoman-era Ciragan Palace in Istanbul September 17, 2009. REUTERS/Osman Orsal (TURKEY POLITICS)

More Uncertainty on Turkey’s Eastern Flank in 2013

Turkey can expect more problems in dealing with both Iraq and Syria in 2013, writes Semih Idiz.

Soldiers of the German armed forces Bundeswehr stand next to a radar-unit (L) and a PAC-2 launcher of a "Patriot" missile battery during a press rehearsal in the north German village of Warbelow December 18, 2012. Germany's lower house of parliament, the Bundestag, last week approved the sending of two Patriot batteries and 400 soldiers to Turkey as part of a NATO plan to protect the country from any spread of the Syrian conflict. REUTERS/Tobias Schwarz (GERMANY - Tags: POLITICS MILITARY CONFLICT)

Iran-Turkey Rivalry Worsens Over Patriot Deployment

Kadri Gursel writes that Iran's fury at NATO's deployment of Patriot missiles to Turkey is also related to Anakara and Tehran's competing interests in Syria.

Supporters of the Saadet (Felicity) Party burn an Israeli flag as they shout anti-Israel slogans during a protest in Istanbul, December 2, 2012. REUTERS/Osman Orsal (TURKEY - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY)

Does Turkey Benefit From Cold War With Israel?

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan believes that Turkey may benefit from a cold war with Israel, writes Kadri Gursel.

Demonstrators hold a minute of silence during a protest against Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) in central Istanbul October 23, 2011. The Turkish military said on Saturday its forces had killed 49 Kurdish militants in the southeast over the last two days, during an offensive to avenge the killing of 24 soldiers by Kurdish fighters earlier this week. REUTERS/Murad Sezer (TURKEYPOLITICS CONFLICT - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST) CONFLICT)

Watch Turkey's Youth in 2013

Tulin Daloglu writes that Turkey's youth is becoming increasingly politicized in opposition to Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's policies.

Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu (L), Egyptian Foreign Minister Mohamed Kamel Amr (C) and Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi attend a news conference after a meeting regarding the Syrian crisis, in Cairo September 17, 2012. Saudi Arabia stayed away from a meeting on the Syria crisis convened by regional powers on Monday, setting back a forum grouping Iran - President Bashar al-Assad's main Middle East ally - and his leading opponents in the region. The "contact group" of Egypt, Iran, Turkey a

Turkey Claims Iran Providing Logistical Support for PKK

Relations between Iran and Turkey are likely to deteriorate in 2013, including over the PKK and the Patriot missile deployment, writes Cengiz Çandar.

Soldiers of the German armed forces Bundeswehr stand next to a PAC-2 launcher of a "Patriot" missile battery during a media rehearsal in the north German village of Warbelow December 18, 2012. Germany's lower house of parliament, the Bundestag, last week approved the sending of two Patriot batteries and 400 soldiers to Turkey as part of a NATO plan to protect the country from any spread of the Syrian conflict. REUTERS/Tobias Schwarz (GERMANY - Tags: POLITICS MILITARY CIVIL UNREST)

NATO Patriot Missiles Show Turkey's Military Weakness

Kadri Gursel writes that Turkey's request for NATO Patriot missiles reveals its lack of capacity and few other options to handle regional threats.

Turkey's Prime Minister and leader of ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) Tayyip Erdogan (R) and his guest Egypt's President Mohamed Mursi greet the audience during AK Party congress in Ankara September 30, 2012. Erdogan trumpeted Turkey's credentials as a rising democratic power on Sunday, saying his Islamist-rooted ruling party had become an example to the Muslim world after a decade in charge. Addressing thousands of party members and regional leaders at a congress of his Justice and Development (

The Turkish 'Model' For Authoritarianism in Egypt

Both Turkey and Egypt may be models for a new authoritarianism and more confrontational societies, writes Cengiz Candar.