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Turkey

Turkey

July 31, 2026

Ankara 6:44 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

Syrian opposition demonstrators living in Jordan hold a poster of Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan during a rally in front of the Turkish embassy in Amman June 26, 2011, in support of Turkey's tough stance against President Bashar al-Assad. REUTERS/Ali Jarekji (JORDAN - Tags: POLITICS) - RTR2O4DU

Five Lessons From Turkey’s 1998 Standoff With Syria

Revisiting the 1998 confrontation with Syria over Kurdish leader Abdullah Ocalan could help decision makers in Ankara avoid the pitfalls of intervention.

Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan attends the first working session of the G20 Summit in Constantine Palace in Strelna near St. Petersburg, September 5, 2013. REUTERS/Sergei Karpukhin (RUSSIA - Tags: POLITICS) - RTX138DI

Military Strike on Syria May Put Turkey at Risk

Turkey may become the target of Syrian retaliation and face domestic unrest in the case of a US strike on Syria.

Syrian refugees, fleeing the violence in their country, wait to cross the border into the autonomous Kurdish region of northern Iraq, August 21, 2013. The government of Iraqi Kurdistan has set an entry quota of 3,000 refugees a day to cope with an influx of Kurds fleeing the civil war in Syria, but there are signs many more are still coming in, aid agencies said on Tuesday. REUTERS/Thaier al-Sudani (IRAQ - Tags: CIVIL UNREST POLITICS SOCIETY IMMIGRATION) - RTX12SKT

Syrian Kurdish Party Struggles With Dissent, Exodus

In Amuda, the Democratic Union Party (PYD) has imposed a resolution banning Syrian Kurdish emigration after last month's mass exodus in pursuit of autonomy.

Photographers hold up placards as they protest against government policies and the Muslim Brotherhood's treatment towards photographers, in Cairo March 19, 2013. REUTERS/Khaled Elfiqi/Egyptian Photo Journalistic Society/Pool (EGYPT - Tags: POLITICS MEDIA CIVIL UNREST) - RTR3F6WN

Egypt's Journalists Face Violence In Wake of Army Takeover

Following the coup that toppled former President Mohammed Morsi, Egypt’s journalists have faced abuse at the hands of state security.

A woman listens to Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan's speech during his rally in Ankara June 15, 2013. Erdogan warned protesters occupying a central Istanbul park that they should leave before a ruling party rally on Sunday or face eviction by the security forces. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic (TURKEY - Tags: CIVIL UNREST POLITICS) - RTX10OUO

The Master’s Saga: Erdogan’s Documentary

A documentary dedicated to the life of Prime Minister Recep Tayyep Erdogan reveals the fault lines in Turkish politics and society.

Syrian residents carry their belongings as they cross from Syria into Turkey, near the town of Azaz in Syria September 5, 2013. REUTERS/Molhem Barakat (SYRIA - Tags: CIVIL UNREST CONFLICT POLITICS) - RTX138IF

Turkey Calls for Help Receiving Syrian Refugees

Turkey's foreign minister is concerned that another chemical weapons attack could increase the number of refugees from neighboring countries.

Riot police use a water cannon to disperse demonstrators during a protest in central Istanbul July 6, 2013. Turkish police fired teargas and water cannon to disperse hundreds of protesters in an Istanbul square on Saturday as they gathered to enter a park that was the centre of protests against Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan last month. REUTERS/Murad Sezer (TURKEY - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST) - RTX11F1Y

Welcome to Post-Gezi Turkey

Developments in the aftermath of mass anti-government protests in Turkey stoke misgivings over the future of Turkish democracy.

Locals walk past trucks lined up at the Oncupinar border crossing on the Turkish-Syrian border in the southeastern city of Kilis September 5, 2013. Every day, hundreds of trucks piled high with goods ranging from cooking oil to cement and nappies form queues stretching for miles at Oncupinar, now a bustling hub for trade with Syria. REUTERS/Umit Bektas (TURKEY - Tags: POLITICS BUSINESS CIVIL UNREST CONFLICT) - RTX1389O

Turkey’s Kurdish Strategy Muddled By Talk of US Syria Strike

A slowdown in the peace process with the PKK and anticipation of a US military strike has pushed the Rojava, or Western Kurdistan, opening to the back burner.

A pro-Kurdish demonstrator covers her face as riot police prevent protestors from marching, at Taksim square in central Istanbul February 15, 2012. Supporters of the pro-Kurdish Peace and Democracy Party (BDP) held a protest to mark the 13th anniversary of the capture of Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) leader Abdullah Ocalan. REUTERS/Murad Sezer (TURKEY - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST CRIME LAW) - RTR2XWBQ

US Strike in Syria Won't Affect Stalled Turkey-PKK Peace Talks

Turkey-PKK negotiations are already stalled.

Palestinian women cross at an Israeli checkpoint in the West Bank town of Bethlehem, during the holy month of Ramadan July 26, 2013. REUTERS/Baz Ratner (WEST BANK - Tags: POLITICS RELIGION SOCIETY) - RTX11ZWA

Israel's Checkpoint Princesses

The Israeli women of Machsom Watch mediate between Palestinians traveling through checkpoints and the Israeli soldiers who operate them.

A Palestinian man drives on the border between Egypt and the southern Gaza Strip September 3, 2013. Egyptian security forces have destroyed some 20 houses along the border with Gaza, local residents said on Tuesday, in what the Palestinian enclave's Islamist Hamas rulers fear is an effort to build a buffer zone to isolate them.
REUTERS/Ibraheem Abu Mustafa (GAZA - Tags: POLITICS) - RTX135NS

Egypt's Buffer-Zone Move Shocks Hamas

Egypt's decision to establish a buffer zone on the Gaza border has raised Palestinian fears of a possible armed confrontation.

Turkey's Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan addresses the members of his ruling AK Party (AKP), as he stands in front of the Turkey's national flag and portraits of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, founder of modern Turkey, and of himself during a meeting at his party headquarters in Ankara July 11, 2012. REUTERS/Umit Bektas (TURKEY - Tags: POLITICS) - RTR34TO6

The AKP, Ibn Khaldun and The New 'Desert Tribes' of Turkey

Medieval Muslim thinker Ibn Khaldun provides insight into the evolution and prospects for the AKP.