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Turkey

August 27, 2026

Ankara 10:21 pm

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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

BERLIN, GERMANY - AUGUST 28: German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas and Josep Borrell, EU Foreign Minister make their way to a press conference after informal talks between the EU Foreign Ministers at the Foreign Office in Berlin on August 28, 2020 in Berlin, Germany. The topics of the so-called Gymnich meeting include the developments in Belarus and the dispute over natural gas in the eastern Mediterranean between Turkey and the EU states Greece and Cyprus. (Photo by Kay Nietfeld - Pool / Getty Images)

Can EU sanctions threat cool Turkey’s moves in eastern Mediterranean?

EU leaders will gather on Sept. 24 to discuss sanctions on Turkey over its aggressive stance against Greece and Cyprus in the eastern Mediterranean, where despite its hawkish statements, Ankara may be backing down.

Does France’s failure in Mali spell a victory for Turkey?

Although claims regarding Turkish involvement in the Malian coup seem far-fetched, one can still see a conflict of interest between France and Turkey over Mali.

PKK under pressure in Iraq's Kurdistan Region

Turkey is continuing its attacks on the Kurdistan Workers Party as a senior Iraqi Kurdish military official hints the group may be wearing out its welcome.

(COMBO) This combination of pictures created on February 21, 2020 shows
US President Donald Trump delivers remarks at a Keep America Great rally in Phoenix, Arizona, on February 19, 2020.
Russian President Vladimir Putin delivers a speech during a ceremony in Jerusalem on January 23, 2020 commemorating the people of Leningrad during the Second World War Nazi siege on the city. - President Donald Trump on february 21, 2020 dismissed reported warnings by US intelligence that Russia is meddling in this year's

How a second Trump term could shift Russia’s stance on Syria

Bahrain, UAE peace deals compel Palestinian rethink on strategy.

United Arab Emirates

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg speaks as he chairs a NATO defence ministers meeting via teleconference at the Alliance headquarters in Brussels, on June 17, 2020. (Photo by FRANCOIS LENOIR / POOL / AFP) (Photo by FRANCOIS LENOIR/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

NATO in unprecedented bid at in-house deconfliction between Turkey, Greece

NATO has made a timely attempt to defuse tensions between fellow members Turkey and Greece, but the initiative comes with many questions.

Turkish anti-riot police officers run as Kurds protest against Turkish military operation in Syria, in Istanbul, on October 13, 2019. - Fighting has engulfed the border area in northeastern Syria since Turkey launched an offensive on October 9 to push back the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), displacing 130,000 people so far according to the United Nations, amidst warnings from aid groups of another humanitarian disaster in Syria's eight-year-old war if the offensive is not halted. (Photo by Yasi

For Syria’s opposition activists, Turkey 'best of the bad'

While initially welcoming millions of refugees and supporting opposition activists after the outbreak of the Syrian civil war, the Turkish government has since shifted positions to further its own interests in a manner that dismays many Syrians living in the country.

Turkish court releases detained journalists, issues prison sentences pending appeals

In a mixed verdict, three Turkish journalists charged with revealing state secrets were released from jail during a trial Wednesday.

Israeli Energy Minister Yuval Steinitz (R), Greece's Energy Minister Kostis Hatzidakis (2nd-R), Egyptian Minister of Petroleum Tarek el-Molla (2nd-L) and Cypriot Energy Minister Yiorgos Lakkotrypis (L) attend the East Mediterranean Gas Forum (EMGF), in Cairo, on January 16, 2020. - Israel began pumping natural gas to Egypt for the first time yesterday under a $15 billion, 15-year deal to liquefy it and re-export it to Europe. It is the first time that Egypt, which in 1979 became the first Arab country to si

Egypt, Cyprus focus on natural gas pipeline amid tensions in eastern Mediterranean

At a time when tensions are on the rise in the eastern Mediterranean, Egypt and Cyprus are intensifying talks to start building an offshore gas pipeline from the Aphrodite gas field to Cairo in preparation for re-export to Europe.

President of the Kurdistan Regional government (IKRG) President Nechirvan Barzani speaks during a bilateral meeting with US President Donald Trump at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, on January 22, 2020. (Photo by JIM WATSON / AFP) (Photo by JIM WATSON/AFP via Getty Images)

Iraqi Kurdistan president carries conciliatory message from Baghdad to Ankara

Iraqi Kurdistan President Nechirvan Barzani carried a conciliatory message from Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi to Ankara.

A picture taken on September 25, 2019 in the Mediterranean Sea, off the coast of Cyprus approximately 20 nautical miles (37 kilometers) north-west of Paphos, shows a Turkish army frigate, the TCG Gelibolu, (R) and the drilling vessel Fatih (L), which was deployed by Turkey to search for gas and oil in waters considered part of the EU state's exclusive economic zone (EEZ). (Photo by - / AFP) (Photo credit should read -/AFP via Getty Images)

Russia enters EastMed fray, offers to mediate with Turkey

As Turkey bemoans its loneliness in a bitter row with Greece over energy exploration in the Mediterranean Sea, Moscow says it is ready to step in to mediate talks.

Who is behind wave of killings of tribal sheikhs in east Syria?

Syria's eastern province of Deir ez-Zor sees escalating tensions between Arab tribes and the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces.

A picture taken on March 30, 2018 shows the traffic jam at the Eminonu district, in Istanbul. - Uber has enjoyed growing popularity in Istanbul, and this has stoked tensions with the official taxi drivers, who have brought legal cases against the firm in Istanbul in a bid to have the app blocked in Turkey, AFP reports. Tensions have also spilt over into violence, with Uber drivers complaining of being verbally harassed, beaten up or even shot at. (Photo by OZAN KOSE / AFP) (Photo credit should read O

Turkey pumps brakes on car imports

Driven by some peculiar dynamics, demand for imported cars has grown in Turkey despite the coronavirus pandemic, leading Ankara to hike taxes to suppress a trend that has worsened the country’s currency woes.