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

Turkey

Turkey

April 12, 2026

Ankara 11:22 pm

2°C

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (L) walks with Prime Minister of Pakistan Shehbaz Sharif upon his arrival during an official ceremony at the Presidential Complex in Ankara, Turkey on June 1, 2022. (Photo by Adem ALTAN / AFP) (Photo by ADEM ALTAN/AFP via Getty Images)

Analysis

Inside Turkey’s role in the US-Iran ceasefire

Turkey used its intelligence networks and rare access to both Washington and Tehran to quietly facilitate the US-Iran ceasefire while advancing its own regional security priorities.

Barin Kayaoglu

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

This picture taken on Oct. 19, 2020 in Istanbul shows Turkey's third drilling ship 'Kanuni' as it enters the bosphorus near Haydarpasa port.

Turkey launches first overseas drilling mission in Somalia: What to know

A drilling ship has reached Somalia to start Turkey's first overseas drilling mission as regional rivalry heats up in the Horn of Africa.

Latest News

Turkey detains 11 over ISIS-linked attack on Israeli Consulate: What to know

Yasin AKGUL / AFP via Getty Images

One gunman killed during attack near Israel’s consulate in Istanbul

Police officials stand among traffic as they patrol near the Israeli Consulate following a shootout between gunmen and police, Istanbul, Turkey, April 7, 2026.

Analysis

How the Iran war can help Syria manage Turkey and its regional rivals

This handout photograph provided by the Turkish Foreign Ministry press service shows Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan (L) meeting with Syria's Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani (R) in Damascus on Dec. 22, 2025.

Amberin Zaman

By Amberin Zaman

Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

Third Turkish ship clears Hormuz as Ankara presses Tehran on safe passage

A bulk carrier sits anchored at Sultan Qaboos Port on March 23, 2026 in Muscat, Oman.

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 security forces member looks on during the burial of one of three Kurdish counterterrorism officers killed the previous day in a strike by a drone that had reportedly originated in Turkey, in the city of Sulaimaniyah in the autonomous Kurdish region of northern Iraq on September 19, 2023. A senior military official in Baghdad said on September 19 that three members of the counterterrorism forces of Iraq's autonomous Kurdish region were killed and three wounded in the strike on Arbat airfield, southeast of

Turkey expands crackdown, airstrikes against PKK as Erdogan lashes out at West

The Turkish Defense Ministry said 16 new targets, including caves, bunkers and warehouses in the northern Iraqi regions of Metina, Hakurk, Gara, Qandil and Assos, were destroyed in the strikes.

Turkish train

UK, Turkey in talks about third railway project

The project follows the UK government underwriting financing in July to support the construction of a 286-kilometer high-speed electric railway in southern Turkey.

People shop at a local street market, Istanbul, Turkey, May 3, 2023.

Turkey’s annual inflation exceeds 61% in September

Month-on-month consumer prices slightly eased to 4.75% in September, down from 9.09% in August.

FABRICE COFFRINI/AFP via Getty Images

Does Ankara attack mark strategy shift for Turkey's PKK?

The attack inside Turkey has prompted worries over Washington's partnership with Syrian Kurds.

Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan stands next to his Togg T10X, Turkey's first domestically-produced electric car, after receiving it from the company at the Presidential Complex in Ankara, on April 3, 2023. (Photo by Adem ALTAN / AFP) (Photo by ADEM ALTAN/AFP via Getty Images)

Targeting Tesla factories, Turkey and Saudi Arabia tempt Elon Musk with compelling offers

The Middle East could help fuel Tesla’s global expansion as countries race to become the next destination producing electric vehicles for the world’s most valuable automaker.

Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman (L).

Impact of India-Mideast-Europe corridor extends far beyond countering China

Police presence after the attack in Ankara, Turkey.

PKK claims bomb attack in Turkey’s capital that injured 2 police officers

The attack happened just as the parliament returned from recess and was expected to take on Sweden’s NATO bid.

An undated image of the ancient city of Gordion.

Turkey’s new UNESCO sites: City of King Midas, wooden mosques

Among the sites awarded the “world heritage” designation is the ancient city of Gordion, which was once ruled by Midas — the king with the golden touch.

People walk past a currency exchange shop on June 23, 2023 in Istanbul, Turkey. The Turkish Lira weakened to a record low of 25.74 against the dollar, a day after the central bank hiked interest rates from 8.5 percent to 15 percent in the first rate decision since the appointment of new central bank governor Hafize Gaye Erkan and the re-election of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan last month. (Photo by Chris McGrath/Getty Images)

Turkey's lira makes a comeback amid economic U-turn: Goldman Sachs

Foreign investors are beginning to return to the Turkish economy after Erdogan's new government reversed the previous unorthodox policies in June.

Nagorno Karabakh

After Nagorno-Karabakh offensive, can Turkey play nice with Armenia?

Following Azerbaijani victory in Nagorno-Karabakh, Turkey is now laying the foundations for a rapprochement with Yerevan.

Poster featuring jailed businessman and philanthropist Osman Kavala.

Turkey’s appeals court upholds life sentence for Osman Kavala, four others

The trial and ensuing sentences have turned into a symbol of Turkey’s democratic backsliding and erosion of judiciary independence.

Refugees sit in a bus near a Red Cross registration centre in Goris, on Sept. 27, 2023.

Turkey’s Fidan holds call with Armenia’s FM amid exodus from Nagorno-Karabakh

The phone call marks the first high-level contact between Ankara and Yerevan following the Azerbaijani offensive in the Nagorno-Karabakh region last week.