Turkish-Kurdish conflict

Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shibani meets with his Turkish counterpart, Hakan Fidan, in Ankara, Aug. 6, 2026.

Syria's Shibani updates Turkey on Kurds' integration, slams Israel during Ankara visit

The visit highlighted Ankara's growing influence in post-Assad Syria, with the two neighbors expanding strategic coordination on security and regional affairs.

Fighters with the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) line up to put their weapons into a pit during a ceremony in Sulaimaniyah, in Iraq's autonomous Kurdistan region, on July 11, 2025.

Analysis

How Turkey's PKK amnesty law entwines Kurds' hopes with Erdogan's ambitions

The first legislation to emerge from direct negotiations with Abdullah Ocalan offers a path to ending Turkey's war with the PKK while potentially giving President Recep Tayyip Erdogan the votes he needs to remain in power for a third term.

Amberin Zaman

By Amberin Zaman

Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa meets with Iraqi Kurdistan Region President Nechirvan Barzani in Damascus, Aug. 3, 2026. IKRPresident/X

Iraqi Kurdish president’s meeting with Syria’s Sharaa signals shift in SDF dynamics

KRG President Nechirvan Barzani’s meeting with Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa underscored the Kurdistan Region’s growing role in Syria’s Kurdish politics.

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

Explainer

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

The Turkish president outlined Ankara’s priorities with the new Iraqi government during the Iraqi leader’s first visit to Turkey: security, energy cooperation and the Development Road.

Latest News

Zaidi to meet Erdogan as Turkey-Iraq ties take off, Kurds feel sidelined

Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi speaks during a meeting with US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth (not pictured) at the Pentagon on July 14, 2026 in Arlington, Virginia.

Interview

PJAK leader mocks Iran’s claim Turkey spiked US Kurdish-backed regime-change plan

A Kurdish fighter from the Iranian Kurdish armed faction Kurdistan Free Life Party (PJAK) stands with his rifle at a site near the Iraqi border with Iran in Iraq's autonomous Kurdistan region, on March 8, 2026.

Siamand Moeini

Siamand Moeini

PJAK Executive Council Member

Iran's Araghchi reveals Turkey's role in thwarting Kurdish offensive

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi speaks during a joint press conference with his Iraqi counterpart following a meeting in Baghdad on June 28, 2026.

Culture

Amid political setbacks, Kurds shine at the World Cup

Germany's forward #26 Deniz Undav (2nd R), an ethnic Kurd, scores his team's first goal during the 2026 World Cup Group E football match between Germany and Ivory Coast at the Toronto Stadium in Toronto on June 20, 2026.

Supporters of Turkey's main pro-Kurdish Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) attend a rally in Diyarbakir, Turkey June 20, 2018. REUTERS/Sertac Kayar - RC150C0CC790

Kurds discouraged by hard-liners in Turkey's new Cabinet

Turkey's new government looks too much like the old one to offer Kurds much hope for a peaceful political resolution.

Soldiers’ funerals become bone of contention between AKP, opposition

Turkey's interior minister claims the main opposition party supports terrorism and bans its officials from the funerals of service members.

Turkey tries to legitimize incursion in northern Iraq

As Turkey advances inside Iraqi territory to eliminate members of the Kurdistan Workers Party, Baghdad has openly rejected the action, though the Kurdistan Regional Government remains curiously silent.

Will Iraq's Qandil become Erdogan’s quagmire?

Although Turkey's military excursion into northern Iraq could be an electoral stunt by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, an expanded operation into Qandil Mountains could become a quagmire for Erdogan and pose great risks for regional stability.

Disgruntled Kurds emerge as potential kingmakers in Turkey’s polls

Kurdish frustration with Ankara’s shift from a policy that favored settlement with the Kurds to hard-line nationalism could sway the outcome of critical snap polls in June.

Soccer Football - Turkish Super League - Galatasaray vs Basaksehir - Turk Telekom Arena, Istanbul, Turkey - April 15, 2018 General view of Galatasaray players celebrating in front of the fans at the end of the match REUTERS/Murad Sezer - RC1598DDF3E0

Soccer mirrors politics in polarized Turkey

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's promotion of a soccer team that subscribes to conservative Islamic values has more so polarized fans than won them over.

Turkish soldiers ride on a military vehicle in the center of Afrin, Syria March 24, 2018. REUTERS/Khalil Ashawi - RC1B6933DB00

Turkey's running out of time to pick a partner in Syria

Turkey's been playing the field in Syria, but as the crisis escalates, Ankara may have to make a commitment to either its NATO allies or Moscow.

Turkish soldiers gather in the Kurdish-majority city of Afrin in northwestern Syria after seizing control of it from Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) on March 18, 2018.
Turkish-backed rebels have seized the centre of Afrin city in northern Syria, Ankara said, as they made rapid gains in their campaign against Kurdish forces. A civilian inside Afrin said that rebels had deployed in the city centre and that the YPG militia had withdrawn. / AFP PHOTO / OMAR HAJ KADOUR (Photo credit should read OM

Erdogan rebuffs Moscow’s call to hand Afrin to Syrian government

Russia wants Turkey to hand control of Afrin province to Damascus, but Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan says the territory will be returned to local residents at Ankara’s discretion.

Presidents Hassan Rouhani of Iran, Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey and Vladimir Putin of Russia hold a joint news conference after their meeting in Ankara, Turkey April 4, 2018. REUTERS/Umit Bektas - RC15EBBB9000

Turkey hosts Iran, Russia to discuss Syria’s future

Iran’s president traveled to Ankara for the second trilateral summit on Syria with Turkish and Russian counterparts.

Deadly Ankara-West fault line cracks open at Syria's Manbij

Confrontation with the United States and the West is a necessary ingredient in Erdogan’s quest to consolidate his nationalist base, making it more likely that Turkey and the United States will collide over Manbij.

25 Jan 2016 - Sinjar, Iraq. Kurds Peshmerga walks through the ruins of the city which had a mixed population of yazidi and muslims kurds. The city has been invaded by ISIS/Daesh on the 3rd of August 2014. Sinjar has been officially liberated in November 2015 cutting the road used by the jhiadi group as a supply route between Raqqah and Mosul. The city is today a ghost town inhabited almost only by military groups such as Kurds Peshmerga, PKK, Iraqi Police and YBS (Yazidi Sinjar Resistance Units). At present

Erdogan keeps finger on trigger as PKK exits Sinjar

It's unclear whether reports of Kurdish militants' withdrawal from Sinjar in Iraq have convinced Turkey not to launch a military offensive.

Turkey rolls into Afrin, apparently on way to Manbij

The city of Afrin, Syria, unexpectedly fell after Kurdish fighters surprisingly retreated, leaving the world watching for Ankara's next move.