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Turkey

Turkey

August 2, 2026

Ankara 8:10 am

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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.

Latest News

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

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

Erdogan and Aoun

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 shakes hands with Syrian refugees as he visits a refugee camp near Akcakale border crossing on the Turkish-Syrian border, southern Sanliurfa province, December 30, 2012. REUTERS/Kayhan Ozer/Prime Minister's Press Office/Handout (TURKEY - Tags: POLITICS CONFLICT) FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY. NOT FOR SALE FOR MARKETING OR ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS. THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. IT IS DISTRIBUTED, EXACTLY AS RECEIVED BY REUTERS, AS A SERVICE TO CLIENTS - RTR3BZG7

Erdogan, Embattled at Home, Popular With Syrian Refugees

Erdogan's Syrian policy is fuelling anti-government feelings, but among Syria's refugees he remains a hero.

Turkey's Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan (R) pins his party badge to Ertugrul Gunay's jacket during their ruling Ak Party meeting at the Turkish Parliament in Ankara May 29, 2007. Gunay, one of Turkey's most well-known social democrat politician, joined Ak Party on Tuesday. REUTERS/Umit Bektas (TURKEY) - RTR1Q7Y2

Former Turkish Minister Of Culture’s Brave Tweet

While the Gezi Park protests will likely come to an end soon, Ertugrul Gunay, former minister of culture, shared some brave tweets today targeting the prime minister directly.

Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan (R) talks with European Union enlargement commissioner Stefan Fuele before the Istanbul Conference of the Ministry For EU Affairs in Istanbul June 7, 2013. Turkey must investigate whether police used excessive force in a crackdown on days of anti-government demonstrations and hold those responsible to account, Fuele said on Friday. REUTERS/Osman Orsal (TURKEY - Tags: CIVIL UNREST POLITICS) - RTX10F7A

Turkey–EU Relations May Be A Casualty of Gezi Park

Erdogan’s mismanagement of Gezi Park crisis has spilled-over into Turkey’s relations with the European Union.

Qatar's Emir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani (R) stands next to his son Crown Prince Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani before the Emir Cup final match between Al-Sadd and Al-Rayyan at Khalifa stadium in Doha May 18, 2013. REUTERS/Fadi Al-Assaad (QATAR - Tags: SPORT SOCCER ROYALS POLITICS) - RTXZRXO

Qatar, Middle East 'Market Maker'

Qatar is modeling its foreign policy on a dream to become the Belgium of a Muslim Brotherhood league of states.

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 June 11, 2013. Erdogan called on protesters to withdraw from central Istanbul's Gezi Park on Tuesday and said the anti-government demonstrations were part of a deliberate attempt to damage Turkey's image and economy. REUTERS/Umit Bektas (TURKEY - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST) - RTX10JIE

Erdogan: Sometimes Innocent Suffer Along With Guilty

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan is conducting a public relations campaign to redress the peaceful Gezi Park protests and paint an image that all protesters are at fault.

Armed policemen observe the area of Gezi Park in Istanbul's Taksim square June 12, 2013. Turkey's president called on Wednesday for dialogue with legitimate demonstrators after riot police cleared the Istanbul square at the centre of almost two weeks of protest against Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan. REUTERS/Yannis Behrakis (TURKEY - Tags: CIVIL UNREST POLITICS TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY) - RTX10L8J

The Only Win-Win For Erdogan and Turkey

Prime Minister Erdogan can achieve his favorite win-win equation only if he takes a step back and avoids escalation

Protesters arrive in the late afternoon at Istanbul's Taksim square June 12, 2013. Turkey's president called on Wednesday for dialogue with legitimate demonstrators after riot police cleared the Istanbul square at the centre of almost two weeks of protest against Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan. REUTERS/Yannis Behrakis (TURKEY - Tags: CIVIL UNREST POLITICS) - RTX10LBJ

Gezi Park Protests May Be Erdogan's Election Investment

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan may be exploiting street protests to divide people to prepare for elections

A woman runs as protesters taunt the riot police during a protest at Taksim Square in Istanbul June 11, 2013. Turkish riot police fired tear gas and water cannon at hundreds of protesters armed with rocks and fireworks on Tuesday as they tried to take back control of a central Istanbul square at the heart of fierce anti-government demonstrations. REUTERS/Murad Sezer (TURKEY - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST) - RTX10JWS

Erdogan, Gezi Park And the Headscarf

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan argues that the Gezi Park protests have to do with the headscarf ban in public places, saying the protesters don’t really know a thing about freedom.

Protesters run as riot police fire teargas during a protest at Taksim Square in Istanbul June 11, 2013. Turkish riot police fired volleys of teargas canisters into Istanbul's Taksim Square, centre of protests against Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan, driving thousands into narrow side streets, witnesses said. REUTERS/Osman Orsal (TURKEY - Tags: CIVIL UNREST POLITICS) - RTX10K5P

Turkey-Kurdish Peace Could Be Victim of Istanbul Showdown

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s hard-line approach in dealing with the Gezi Park demonstrators could endanger the Turkey-Kurdish peace process.

ISTANBUL, TURKEY - JUNE 11: Protesters aid one another after riot police used tear gas to disperse the crowd during a demonstration near Taksim Square on June 11, 2013 in Istanbul, Turkey. Istanbul has seen protests rage on for days, with two protesters and one police officer killed. What began as a protest over the fate of Taksim Gezi Park, has turned, with the heavy-handed response by police, into a protest over what is being seen as Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's increasingly authoritarian agenda

Erdogan Raises the Stakes

The intimidation tactics and high tension strategies that Turkey's prime minister appears to have opted for will unsettle the economy, the Kurdish peace process and eventually the AKP.

Turkish riot police enter Istanbul's Taksim square, the epicentre of nearly two weeks of anti-government demos, during clashes with protestors on June 11, 2013 on a 12th day of unrest. Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said today he had "no more tolerance" for the mass anti-government demonstrations that have engulfed the country. AFP PHOTO / ARIS MESSINIS (Photo credit should read ARIS MESSINIS/AFP/Getty Images)

Istanbul Square Crackdown Shakes Erdogan’s Regional Credibility

Ankara must now go on defense and try to protect itself from negative fallout in Syria.

A protester runs by a burning barricade during clashes with riot police in Istanbul's Gazi neighborhood June 8, 2013. REUTERS/Yannis Behrakis (TURKEY - Tags: CIVIL UNREST POLITICS TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY) - RTX10GV1

Is This the Beginning Of Erdogan Era's End?

Some of the traits that made Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan a success are now emerging as liabilities.