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Turkey

Turkey

May 16, 2026

Ankara 1:21 pm

18°C

Mazloum Kobane, commander-in-chief of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), speaks during the pan-Kurdish "Unity and Consensus" conference in Qamishli in northeastern Syria on April 26, 2025.

Interview

Syrian Kurdish commander Kobane says Turkey visit ‘in the making,’ Ocalan meeting possible

The SDF commander-in-chief reflected on a fragile integration deal with Damascus, growing Kurdish backlash and ongoing talks with Turkey as questions mount over Rojava’s political future.

Mazloum Kobane

Mazloum Kobane

SDF commander in chief

Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, right, and Armenia’s Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan shake hands before a meeting at Prague Castle in Prague, Czech Republic, Thursday, Oct. 6, 2022.

Turkey, Armenia to launch direct trade in normalization push: What to know

The move removes a decades-old reexport mechanism routed largely through Georgia as Ankara and Yerevan step up normalization efforts.

Latest News

New Turkey maritime draft bill fuels EastMed tensions with Greece, Cyprus

The helicopter of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan lands on Abdulhamid Han drill ship, the fourth built by Turkey, in Mersin on Aug. 9, 2022, before being sent for gas exploration to an undisputed area in the Mediterranean Sea, south of Gazipasa.

Turkey's border reopening unlocks new sphere of influence in Syria

Turkish Red Crescent's cars and trucks cross the Turkish border as they leave the Syrian city of Tel Abyad on Oct. 19, 2019, in Akcakale, Turkey.

Analysis

From drones to deterrence: Turkey's ICBM missile signals bigger ambitions

ISTANBUL, TURKEY - MAY 06: A man poses for a photograph in front of the newly unveiled, Turkish made intercontinental ballistic missile Yildirimhan at the SAHA International Defence and Aerospace Expo on May 06, 2026 in Istanbul, Turkey. The International Defence and Aerospace Exhibition, showcased Turkish and foreign companies new products and technology. The expo was dominated by UAV products as modern warfare increasingly shifts to drone and unmanned technologies. (Photo by Chris McGrath/Getty Images)

Barin Kayaoglu

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

Samuel Wendel

Senior Market Research Analyst

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

People walk past the Bab al-Yemen gate of the Old Sanaa city January 6, 2013. REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah (YEMEN - Tags: SOCIETY CITYSCAPE) - RTR3C5QS

Turkey’s Influence Divides Yemenis

Turkish influence in Yemen, which has continued since Ottoman times, has proven to be a divisive topic among the Yemeni public.

A Turkish protester takes cover behind a wall during clashes with riot policemen in Istanbul on September 10, 2013. Turkish police fired tear gas and plastic bullets at thousands of people who gathered in Istanbul to protest the death of a 22-year-old demonstrator the previous day in the southeastern city of Antakya. AFP PHOTO/OZAN KOSE (Photo credit should read OZAN KOSE/AFP/Getty Images)

Are Protests on Rise Again in Turkey?

Turkey may risk a new wave of unrest if the government fails to address the grievances of minorities.

A protester holds a banner reading "we are alevi" as he and many others wait to hear the decision of the court in front of a courthouse in Ankara March 13, 2012. Turkish police fired tear-gas and water cannon to disperse hundreds protesting on Tuesday against the dropping of a case against five people charged with killing 37 writers and liberals in a 1993 hotel fire set off by Islamist rioters.The opposition accused Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan and his AK Party, which emerged from a series of banned Islami

Turkish Alevis Refuse 'Sunnification'

Shiites and Alevis in Turkey continue to struggle for rights and recognition.

Riot police fire tear gas during a protest in central Istanbul September 10, 2013. Turkish police used teargas to disperse crowds in Istanbul and Ankara who were rallying against the death of a protester earlier in the day, witnesses said. REUTERS/Osman Orsal (TURKEY - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST) - RTX13GD6

A Death Provokes Anti-Government Protests in Turkey

The Arab Alawite community of Antakya holds the government responsible for the unprecedented tensions in their once peaceful town after Ahmet Atakan’s death on Sept. 9.

Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) fighters walk on the way to their new base in northern Iraq May 14, 2013. The first group of Kurdish militants to withdraw from Turkey under a peace process entered northern Iraq on Tuesday, and were greeted by comrades from the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), in a symbolic step towards ending a three-decades-old insurgency. The 13 men and women, carrying guns and with rucksacks on their backs, arrived in the area of Heror, near Metina mountain on the Turkish-Iraqi border, a Reu

Turkey's Kurdish Road MapLosing Direction

The PKK has suspended its withdrawal of militants from Turkey, casting doubt on the fate of the peace process.

A woman walks at the courtyard of the Ottoman-era Sultanahmet mosque, also known as the Blue Mosque, in Istanbul April 26, 2013. The banners depicting the hadiths, sayings of Prophet Mohammad, hang on the occasion of the celebration of the Prophet's birthday. Scholars around the Muslim world were alarmed five years ago by news reports that Turkey planned a new, possibly heretical compilation of the Prophet's sayings that might scrap those it thought were out of date. Turkish religious leaders and theologian

A Salafi Assault on Turkish Theology?

Turkey's universities are witnessing a rise in a more dogmatic approach to Islamic philosophy.

Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan speaks during
the presentation by the Istanbul 2020 committee as a candidate to host the 2020 Summer Olympic Games, in Buenos Aires September 7, 2013. The IOC will elect the winning city from candidates Istanbul, Madrid, and Tokyo on Saturday afternoon at their 125th Session in the Argentine capital. REUTERS/Fabrice Coffrini/Pool (ARGENTINA - Tags: SPORT OLYMPICS) - RTX13BCO

Turkey’s Policies Defied By Latest Twists in Syria

Turkey seems to be on the wrong side of events in Egypt and Syria.

Mustafa Abu Bekir, 23, is carried by a family member as they enter Turkey from the Turkish Cilvegozu border gate, located opposite the Syrian commercial crossing point Bab al-Hawa, in Reyhanli, Hatay province, September 9, 2013. Abu Bekir introduced himself as a Free Syrian Army fighter who was severely injured and lost his legs during a bombing by the Syrian Air Force while he and others were fighting in the front line against forces loyal to Syria's President Bashar al-Assad in Iblib almost a month ago. T

Turks on Syria Border Oppose US Military Strike

Many Turkish residents of the border town of Reyhanli — hit by twin car bombings May 11 — worry that they are in jeopardy as a result of a US miltiary strike on Syria.

A fighter from the Islamist Syrian rebel group Jabhat al-Nusra rides a motorcycle along a deserted street in Deir al-Zor August 17, 2013. Picture taken August 17, 2013. REUTERS/Khalil Ashawi (SYRIA - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST CONFLICT) - RTX12PKS

Turkey Decides Jabhat Al-Nusra Is a Threat

A Turkish official has said Ankara will not support the al-Qaeda-linked Jabhat al-Nusra in Syria.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas (L) speaks to the media after his meeting with Jordan's King Abdullah at the Royal Palace in Amman August 28, 2013. REUTERS/Muhammad Hamed (JORDAN - Tags: POLITICS ROYALS) - RTX12Z0D

Abu Mazen Remains Palestine's Teflon Leader

Despite all the criticism leveled at Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, he still polls the highest among Palestinian leaders.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry (L) meets with Turkey's Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu before attending the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) security meetings in Bandar Seri Begawan July 2, 2013. REUTERS/Jacquelyn Martin/Pool (BRUNEI - Tags: POLITICS) - RTX119IW

Would Syria Retaliate Against Turkey?

Al-Monitor’s analysis coverage of a possible US military strike on Syria.

Turkey's Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan gestures as he addresses the media before leaving for Turkmenistan at Esenboga Airport in Ankara August 15, 2013. Erdogan called on Thursday for the U.N. Security Council to convene quickly and act after what he described as a massacre in Egypt, during a news conference in Ankara. REUTERS/Umit Bektas (TURKEY - Tags: POLITICS) - RTX12M4D

Israel Waits for Erdogan

Deteriorating relations with Syria, Iran and post-Muslim Brotherhood Egypt force Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan to re-establish the strategic alliance with Israel.