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

Turkey

Turkey

July 4, 2026

Ankara 10:31 am

24°C

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

Kuba Kahve.jpg

Turkey's first Communist mayor offers 'another left'

A small town in Turkey has become the first municipality to elect a Communist mayor.

Turkey's atheists get organized

Turkey’s Association of Atheists faces negative public perceptions, but is a sign of a trend in Turkish civil society of groups seeking recognition and rights.

Children sell washing detergent on a sidewalk in Aleppo December 1, 2013. REUTERS/Molhem Barakat (SYRIA - Tags: CIVIL UNREST SOCIETY POLITICS CONFLICT) - RTX16005

Aleppo's children struggle to stay in school

A first-hand report from Aleppo on local initiatives in rebel-held east Aleppo trying to keep children in school.

A member of Iraqi security forces looks on during the digging operations to build a trench on the northern Iraqi border with Syria to prevent people from crossing over into Iraq's autonomous Kurdistan region, on April 13, 2014 in Zakho. AFP PHOTO/SAFIN HAMED (Photo credit should read SAFIN HAMED/AFP/Getty Images)

KRG trench divides Syrian, Iraqi Kurds

The ditch dug by the Kurdistan Regional Government at Rojava, separating Syrian and Iraqi Kurds, adds another layer of complexity to the regional conflict.

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 April 8, 2014. Turkey's first directly elected president will be a more powerful figure than the current largely ceremonial role, Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan was quoted on Tuesday as saying, boosting expectations he may run for the post in August. Erdogan is barred by the rules of his ruling AK Party from standing for a fourth term as prime minister and

Hard choices for Erdogan as he mulls candidacy for president

Turkey is heading to uncharted territory of first direct presidential elections.

Russian President Vladimir Putin (R) shakes hands with Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during their meeting in Moscow's Kremlin November 20, 2013. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov (RUSSIA - Tags: POLITICS) - RTX15LV1

Israel takes strategic alliance with US for granted

Israel’s neutrality toward the crisis in Ukraine is a dangerous precedent in Israel's relations with the US, when taking into account that it can exist without Russia’s help, but not without American support.

An Israeli air force F-15I fighter jet releases flares during an air force pilots' graduation ceremony at Hatzerim air base in southern Israel December 26, 2013. REUTERS/Nir Elias (ISRAEL - Tags: MILITARY TRANSPORT) - RTX16UHR

Israel's military revolution

The changes in the Middle East have triggered a comprehensive transformation within the IDF, including its strategic doctrine, its battalion layout and the application of intelligence in combat operations.

A Moody's sign is displayed on 7 World Trade Center, the company's corporate headquarters in New York, February 6, 2013. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid (UNITED STATES - Tags: BUSINESS) - RTR3DFKX

Turkey criticizes downgraded credit rating

Turkey blames its long-standing quarrel with credit rating agencies on hasty misperceptions of its political stability.

Turkey's Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan (first row, C) attends a meeting with members of his ruling AK Party at his party headquarters in Ankara September 28, 2011. REUTERS/Umit Bektas (TURKEY - Tags: POLITICS TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY) - RTR2RXTQ

Is Turkey reverting to a 'muhaberat' state?

The Turkish prime minister's interference with the judiciary and a new intelligence bill could signal a return to a single-ruler era — the era of the "national chief."

Journalists demanding freedom for the media take part in a protest against Turkey's ruling AK Party (AKP) in Ankara February 15, 2014. The signs read: "Journalism is asking questions, not keeping silent" (L) and "Press freedom also means people's freedom to access information" (C and R). REUTERS/Umit Bektas (TURKEY - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST MEDIA) - RTX18VGG

Double standard for press freedom in Turkey

Neither local nor Western press groups condemned the heavy penalties on the pro-government aHaber TV station.

Israeli soldiers check their weapons at a staging near the West Bank city of Hebron April 15, 2014. An Israeli man was killed in a shooting attack on a civilian car near the city of Hebron in the occupied West Bank on Monday, the eve of the Jewish holiday of Passover, military sources said.
REUTERS/Ammar Awad (WEST BANK - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST MILITARY TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY) - RTR3LCE0

Lone-wolf attacks on Israeli settlers increase

Individual, unorganized Palestinian attacks against Israeli settlers are difficult to prevent and reflect a frustrated Palestinian street.

A plainclothes policeman shouts after an explosion, which was followed by two further blasts, in front of Cairo University April 2, 2014. A series of explosions outside Cairo University killed two people on Wednesday, including a police brigadier-general, security officials said, in what appeared to be the latest militant attack in a fast-growing insurgency. REUTERS/Amr Abdallah Dalsh (EGYPT - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST) - RTR3JNLM

Terrorism expands from Sinai to Cairo

Armed extremist groups in Egypt have spread their operations from the remote areas of the Sinai Peninsula to the densely populated metropolises of Cairo and the Delta.