Turkey elections

A protestor holds a placard of Istanbul's detained Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu as they listen to the leader of Turkey's main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) Ozgur Ozel during a rally protesting the 100th day of his detention at Sarachane Square in Istanbul on July 1, 2025. (Photo by Yasin AKGUL / AFP) (Photo by YASIN AKGUL/AFP via Getty Images)

Turkey detains 30 as government crackdown on opposition deepens: What to know

Detainees include officials from Istanbul and Antalya municipalities and their family members as part of an ongoing corruption investigation into the Republican People’s Party (CHP) that critics say is politically motivated.

An undated image of Enes Hocaogullari.

Turkey arrests youth delegate over Council of Europe address: What to know

The youth activist’s arrest adds to Ankara’s growing isolation as Turkey faces suspension from Europe’s top human rights body.

Mazlum Kobane, commander-in-chief of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), speaks during the pan-Kurdish "Unity and Consensus" conference in Qamishli in northeastern Syria, on April 26, 2025.

Analysis

Emboldened by Suwayda fallout, Syria’s Kurds hold their ground with Damascus

The Suwayda crisis boosts Kurdish confidence and threatens Erdogan’s bid to secure Kurdish support for a third term.

Amberin Zaman

By Amberin Zaman

Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

THE HAGUE, NETHERLANDS - JUNE 25: U.S. President Donald Trump (R) speaks with President of the Republic of Türkiye, Recep Tayyip Erdogan (L), as they arrive for the North Atlantic Council Plenary Session on the second day of the 2025 NATO Summit on June 25, 2025 in The Hague, Netherlands. Among other matters, members are to approve a new defense investment plan that raises the target for defense spending to 5% of GDP. (Photo by Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)

Analysis

From Caucasus to Iraq: How Israel’s war hands Turkey edge over Iran

After the war with Israel, a wounded Iran opens new doors for Turkey from Iraq to the Caucasus, but advancing its agenda could rekindle their rivalry.

Ezgi Akin

In Ankara, reporting on diplomacy, EU-Turkey ties, NATO

Latest News

Turkey's spy chief heads for Iraq as PKK militants prepare to disarm

An Iraqi Kurdish man holds a flag with the portrait of jailed Kurdish militant leader Abdullah Ocalan during a demonstration in the northern Iraqi Kurdish city of Sulaimaniyah on Oct. 10, 2019 against the Turkish offensive in northeastern Syria.

Analysis

Erdogan’s long game: How CHP court case could cripple Turkey’s opposition

Leader of Turkey's main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) Ozgur Ozel addresses the audience during a rally in Istanbul on April 9, 2025.

Ezgi Akin

In Ankara, reporting on diplomacy, EU-Turkey ties, NATO

Turkey's Erdogan vows justice amid rage over alleged Prophet Muhammad cartoon

Protesters hold placards as they demonstrate against cartoonists of a satirical magazine following allegations that it had published a cartoon of the Prophet Mohammed, outside Taksim mosque in Istanbul on July 1, 2025.

Turkish prosecutors probe main opposition leader Ozel, oust mayors

Ozgur Ozel, head of Turkey's main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP), gestures toward supporters during a rally in support of arrested Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu in Ankara, April 23, 2025.

Four years on, former AKP insiders reflect on Turkey's failed coup

Former members and supporters of Turkey’s ruling Justice and Development Party discuss the four-year anniversary of the 2016 failed coup and say that the rule of law and democratic principles have been weakened in the country.

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan attends a welcoming ceremony at the Presidential Palace in Asuncion, Paraguay December 2, 2018. REUTERS/Jorge Adorno - RC1A83AAAAA0

Is Turkey already done with executive presidency?

Restoring the parliamentary system makes a nifty slogan for the Turkish opposition, but the panacea for the clogged political establishment is more demanding.

ISTANBUL, TURKEY - MAY 18: Hagia Sophia and its surroundings remain empty during the third day of the 4-day coronavirus restrictions imposed to stem the novel COVID-19 pandemic in Istanbul, Turkey on May 18, 2020. (Photo by Erhan Sevenler/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)

Ankara unfolds Hagia Sophia card against COVID-19 crisis

Erdogan’s government has signaled it could consider turning the Hagia Sophia Museum into a mosque as part of religious messages aimed at keeping its voter base intact under the strain of economic turmoil, made worse by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Turkey's Deputy Prime Minister Ali Babacan speaks during a news conference during the G20 finance ministers and central bank governors meeting in Istanbul February 9, 2015. Turkey prefers to set specific national investment targets as part of efforts to boost economic growth but it is not clear if all G20 member nations are willing to sign up to hard numbers, Babacan said on Monday. REUTERS/Murad Sezer (TURKEY - Tags: POLITICS BUSINESS) - GM1EB291GYW01

Could baby-faced rival of Erdogan be 'remedy' for Turkey's problems?

Can Ali Babacan, Turkey's former deputy premier, be a beacon of hope for the center-right?

Former Turkish prime minster Ahmet Davutoglu speaks during a news conference to announce formally the establishment of his Future Party in Ankara, Turkey, December 13, 2019. REUTERS/ Alp Eren Kaya - RC29UD947Q4I

Turkish state seizes foundation linked to Erdogan political rival

State authorities have taken over a second institution linked to former Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu, who resigned last year from President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s ruling party to form his own.

Former Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu (R) holds a press conference at his home in Ankara on September 13, 2019, to announce that he would launch a "new political movement" in the latest challenge to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan from his former allies. (Photo by Adem ALTAN / AFP) (Photo credit should read ADEM ALTAN/AFP via Getty Images)

Former Erdogan ally establishes new party in Turkey

Following months of speculation, former Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu is establishing a new party to challenge President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s hold on center-right voters.

Domestic politics, Idlib sway timing of Turkey’s Syrian operation

Erdogan’s latest campaign in Syria may be justified as an effort to fight terrorism, but his immediate objectives include stopping the unraveling within his party, fracturing the opposition bloc and creating space inside Syria for a possible new wave of refugees from Idlib.

Supporters of the ruling AK Party (AKP) wave flags as their mayoral candidate Binali Yildirim speaks during an election rally in Istanbul, Turkey, June 21, 2019. REUTERS/Murad Sezer - RC17CE82D9C0

Is Turkish presidential system helping cause fall in AKP membership?

Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s realized goal for Turkey to have an executive presidency may be fast becoming his worst mistake: His party is losing members at the top and from the base and former colleagues are challenging him directly. Can Erdogan survive his party’s decay?

Political earthquake in Turkey: A regime running amok?

Three elected Kurdish mayors were removed from their posts in a move further endangering what remains of Turkey's democracy.

Two Syrian refugees walk along fences in Nizip refugee camp, near the Turkish-Syrian border in Gaziantep province, Turkey, November 30, 2016. REUTERS/Umit Bektas - RC19B9EC1810

Has Turkey’s policy on Syrian refugees started to backfire?

The Syrian refugee question is set to pose a major political headache for Erdogan in the coming period.

Opposition aims to curb Erdogan’s powers after election rout

The government’s debacle in local polls in Istanbul and most of Turkey’s other big cities has set the stage for a new power struggle in which the opposition appears bent on trimming Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s powers. The president, in turn, seeks to debilitate the newly elected opposition mayors.

Ekrem Imamoglu, mayoral candidate of the main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP), greets supporters at a rally of in Beylikduzu district, in Istanbul, Turkey, June 23, 2019. REUTERS/Kemal Aslan - RC144BE506D0

Opposition retakes Istanbul mayor's office to find powers shrinking

As Istanbul’s new Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu retakes office after beating the ruling party's candidate a second time, reports are emerging that his powers and those of other Turkish mayors are already being whittled down.