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Turkey

Turkey

July 31, 2026

Ankara 5:43 pm

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A demonstrator carries a CHP flag during a protest in Izmir, Turkey, on May 24, 2026.

Explainer

What’s behind Turkey’s latest wave of arrests against opposition mayors?

The operations come as Ozgur Ozel’s newly formed party gains momentum.

A Saudi navy ship is pictured docked at King Faisal navy base in Jeddah before the departure of a team to Port Sudan to help with the evacuation efforts of people fleeing Sudan, on April 29, 2023.

Turkey, Pakistan among 14 countries backing Saudi Arabia's anti-Houthi Red Sea alliance

Riyadh won political backing from 14 countries for its proposed maritime defense coalition, but members have yet to commit to joining as Washington weighs its position.

Erdogan and Aoun

Turkey ready to participate in post-UNIFIL force in Lebanon, Erdogan tells Aoun

Aoun paid a one-day visit to Ankara amid Lebanon's push to secure an Israeli withdrawal and end the fighting between Israel and Hezbollah.

Latest News

Explainer

Erdogan hosts Zaidi, touts ‘historic step’ in Turkey-Iraq energy ties

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan greets Iraq Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi upon his arrival in Ankara, July 28, 2026.

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

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.

Turks react after finding out that Tokyo was awarded the right to host the 2020 Summer Games as they watch it live on big screens in Sultanahmet Square in Istanbul September 7, 2013. REUTERS/Murad Sezer (TURKEY - Tags: SPORT OLYMPICS) - RTX13BZQ

Erdogan, Istanbul Lose 2020 Olympics to Tokyo

Istanbul lost its bid for the 2020 Olympics, but Erdogan may have lost more.

Turkish President Abdullah Gul (C), Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan (R) and Chief of Staff General Necdet Ozel (L) attend a ceremony marking the 91st anniversary of Victory Day at the mausoleum of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, founder of modern Turkey, in Ankara August 30, 2013. REUTERS/Umit Bektas (TURKEY - Tags: POLITICS MILITARY ANNIVERSARY) - RTX131E3

Turkey’s Dialogue Deficit: Less Schadenfreude, More Ubuntu

Turkish culture and society would benefit from a shift from schadenfreude to ubuntu.

Demonstrators form a human chain in front of security forces during a peace day rally at Taksim square in central Istanbul September 1, 2013. REUTERS/Osman Orsal (TURKEY - Tags: CIVIL UNREST POLITICS) - RTX133II

Turks Oppose War in Syria

A recent Turkish poll shows that those opposed to a war in Syria grew from 57% to 72% over the past year.

A piece of the wreckage of Turkish F-4 jet which was shot down by Syria and retrieved from the seabed on Thursday, is seen in this undated, picture taken underwater and released by Turkish Chief of Staff July 5, 2012. Turkey's armed forces command said on Thursday it had retrieved the bodies of two pilots of a jet shot down by Syria last month, recovering them from the seabed 8.6 nautical miles from the Syrian coast. REUTERS/Turkey Land Forces Headquarters/Handout (TURKEY - Tags: POLITICS MILITARY) FOR EDIT

Was Turkey's F-4 Shot Down Over Syria by a Lawyer?

Only a lawyer has been prosecuted following the shooting down of a Turkish jet over Syrian airspace in June 2012.

The Republican People's Party (CHP) leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu addresses his supporters during his party's congress in Ankara February 26, 2012. REUTERS/Umit Bektas (TURKEY - Tags: POLITICS) - RTR2YGY0

Erdogan Criticizes Opposition Leader For Visits to Iraq, Egypt

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan feverishly criticizes main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu for his travels to Baghdad and Cairo.

Christian clerics hold candles during a candle-lit vigil at the Balamand Monastery in Koura, near the north Lebanese city of Tripoli, to call for the release of bishops kidnapped in northern Syria two months ago, June 22, 2013. Greek Orthodox Patriarch John Yazigi led the candle-lit vigil on Saturday for Greek Orthodox archbishop Paul Yazigi and Syriac Orthodox archbishop Yohanna Ibrahim, appealing to their kidnappers to free them and urging Syrian security forces to do more to win their release. REUTERS/Om

Christians In the Levant Grow Fearful Over US Syria Strike

Christians in Syria and Lebanon congregate to discuss the implications for their community should the United States follow through with its plans to carry out military strikes on Syria.