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July 4, 2026

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A screenshot of one of Deniz Goktas' standup routines posted to YouTube.

Culture

Turkish standup comic detained after act calling Erdogan 'dictator' goes viral

Comedian Deniz Goktas’ arrest comes as Ankara intensifies prosecutions against opposition figures, journalists, artists and critics ahead of a major NATO summit.

Somalia's President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud speaks during the launch of an offshore energy exploration at the port in Mogadishu on April 10, 2026.

Turkish jets strike al-Shabab targets in Somalia: What to know

A Somali Defense Ministry statement initially said Turkish F-16s carried out strikes on Al-Shabab targets before a later version referred only to “international partners.”

Syrian textile employees work in a textile workshop in Gaziantep, Turkey, on Jan. 30, 2025.

Explainer

Turkey eases job rules for 1M+ Syrians under temporary protection: What to know

The move, part of a broader easing of restrictions on Syrians living in Turkey, could allow roughly 1.1 million working-age Syrians to enter registered employment more easily as Ankara seeks to reduce informal labor and address workforce gaps.

Latest News

Turkey, Azerbaijan slam Israel’s Armenian genocide recognition as Yerevan mum

KAREN MINASYAN / AFP via Getty Images

Analysis

Why Turkey and Egypt are deepening military ties amid regional turmoil

From (L-R) Pakistani Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar, Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty, Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan and Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan attend a meeting in Cairo on June 21, 2026.

Barin Kayaoglu

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

Explainer

Israel's Armenian genocide recognition marks new front against Turkey

Members of the Jerusalem Armenian community hold placards as they march during commemorations for the 94th anniversary of mass killings of their kin under the Ottoman Empire, Jerusalem's Old City, April 24, 2009.

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

A photo of Syria's President Bashar al-Assad is seen along a street in old Homs city May 8, 2014. Syrian forces say they will take full control on Thursday over Homs, a city once vibrant with pro-democracy crowds but now associated with images of ruin that epitomise the brutality of Syria's civil war. After holding the Old City of Homs for nearly two years, close to 1,200 rebel fighters boarded buses which took them out of the "capital of the revolution" in convoys on Wednesday and Thursday, activists said.

Ankara at crossroads on Syria policy

Developments in Syria have confounded the Turkish government’s efforts to depose President Bashar al-Assad and forced a rethink of its policies.

A gay rights activist waves a rainbow flag during a protest at Tunel Square in Istanbul June 23, 2013. REUTERS/Marko Djurica (TURKEY - Tags: SOCIETY CIVIL UNREST) - RTX10Y6T

Honor killings haunt Turkey's gay community

Two court cases of "gay honor killings" in Turkey reveal a similar pattern of deep-rooted prejudice and social codes that override even the closest family bonds.

Fighters from Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) burn confiscated cigarettes in the city of Raqqa April 2, 2014. REUTERS/Stringer (SYRIA - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST CONFLICT RELIGION SOCIETY TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY) - RTR3JP4Z

Saudis fear Syria blowback after discovering ISIS cell

Fears of jihadist blowback from the Syrian war are starting to be realized after Saudi's discovery of a terrorist cell planning attacks on its soil.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe (R), Turkey's President Abdullah Gul (L), Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan (C), his wife Emine Erdogan pray with Head of Turkey's Religious Affairs Directorate Mehmet Gormez during the opening ceremony of Marmaray, a subway links Europe with Asia some 60 metres below the Bosphorus Strait, in Istanbul October 29, 2013. Turkey opened the world's first underwater rail link between two continents on Tuesday, connecting Asia and Europe and allowing PM Erdogan to realise a project

Who speaks for Islam in Turkey?

Turkey's Religious Affairs Directorate is under scrutiny.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu listens to a question during a joint news conference with his Italian counterpart Enrico Letta at the end of a bilateral meeting at Villa Madama in Rome December 2, 2013. REUTERS/Alessandro Bianchi (ITALY - Tags: POLITICS) - RTX1616K

Netanyahu stalls on reconciliation with Turkey

Israel's premier still does not trust Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Journalists and activists participate in a rally calling for press freedom in central Ankara March 19, 2011. The recent arrest and jailing of some 10 journalists as part of investigations into Ergenekon, an ultra-nationalist, secularist network opposed to Prime Minister's Tayyip Erdogan's rule, has a triggered expressions of concern from the European Union, the U.S. and human rights groups about Ankara's commitment to media freedom and democratic principles. REUTERS/Umit Bektas (TURKEY - Tags: CIVIL UNREST

Freedom House right about Turkey

Turkish journalists should not follow Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu's suggestion to reject the press freedom report.

A civil defence worker runs towards a fire after what activists said was an air strike by forces loyal to Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad in Aleppo's Bustan al-Qasr April 18, 2014. REUTERS/Stringer (SYRIA - Tags: CONFLICT CIVIL UNREST) - RTR3LTHO

Aleppo's rebel fighters disillusioned with war

Rebel fighters in Aleppo look to Homs as a potential model for a cease-fire to end the war in the city.

Sinai residents complain of violations by Egypt army

Sinai civilians claim they are bearing the brunt of the Egyptian army’s war on terror in the peninsula.

Turkish lira banknotes are seen in this photo illustration taken in Istanbul January 7, 2014. Turkey's lira slipped against the U.S. dollar on Wednesday as the government bond yield curve, which had briefly inverted on Tuesday because of speculation about an emergency rate hike to rescue the currency, returned to a positive slope. Picture taken January 7, 2014. REUTERS/Murad Sezer (TURKEY - Tags: BUSINESS) - RTX1761J

Turkey’s currency prepares for a fall

After years of efforts to keep its currency valuable, Turkey’s government seems to be shifting to a cheaper lira policy in an attempt to boost exports and reduce the country’s gaping current account deficit.

Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu attends the opening of a meeting of foreign ministers at the Zaatari refugee camp in the Jordanian city of Mafraq, near the border with Syria, May 4, 2014. Foreign ministers of major refugee hosting countries attended a one-day meeting in the Zaatari refugee camp to discuss a resolution for the Syrian refugee crisis. The meeting - the third for countries harbouring the largest number of Syrian refugees - brought together Foreign Ministers from Jordan, Lebanon, Egypt,

State Dept. rejects Davutoglu’s denial of media watchdog report

While the Freedom House report was expected to cause a stir, the statements by Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu stand out, eliciting a rebuke from the State Department.

A woman wearing a sign on her head that reads "No Harassment" takes part in a protest against Egypt's President Mohamed Mursi and the Muslim Brotherhood and in support of women rights in the constitution in front of the presidential palace in Cairo October 4, 2012. REUTERS/Amr Abdallah Dalsh (EGYPT - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST) - RTR38T3N

Egyptian women scared to speak out against sexual harassment

Sexual harassment leads all crimes against Egyptian women, and experts say it is abetted by toothless laws, lax enforcement and societal acceptance of the phenomenon.

A poster depicting U.S.-based Muslim cleric Fethullah Gulen as a pope, is seen as supporters of the ruling AK Party attend an election rally in Konya, central Turkey, March 28, 2014. Erdogan pulled out of election rallies in central Turkey on Friday in order to rest his voice after weeks of campaigning around the country, his office said. Erdogan had difficulty speaking at rallies in southeast Turkey on Thursday ahead of Sunday's local elections. Turkey will hold municipal elections on March 30. REUTERS/Umi

Does Erdogan really want Gulen in Turkey?

Turkish Prime Minster Recep Tayyip Erdogan is calling for Fethullah Gulen's extradition from the United States to Turkey, but he should be careful what he wishes for.