Turkish-Kurdish conflict

US soldiers patrol in Syria's northeastern city Qamishli, in the Hasakeh province, mostly controlled by Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, on January 9, 2025. (AFP via Getty Images)

Analysis

US' Syria pullout continues amid looming Iran clash

The Trump administration is taking advantage of a rare moment of quiet following the fall of the Bashar al-Assad regime in hope of disentangling the US military from nearly a decade of involvement in Syria.

Jared Szuba

In Washington, DC, reporting on defense, national security, military

US special envoy for Syria, the ambassador to Turkey Thomas Barrack attends a flag-raising ceremony at the US ambassador's residence in Damascus on May 29, 2025 for the first time since 2011. Barrack's visit to Syria marks a new step in the rapprochement between the two countries following the fall of former president Bashar al-Assad. (Photo by Rami al SAYED / AFP) (Photo by RAMI AL SAYED/AFP via Getty Images)

US envoy Barrack in Israel after cross-border shelling with Syria: What to know

US envoy for Syria Tom Barrack met Wednesday with Israeli officials in an effort to de-escalate ongoing tensions with Syria and Turkey.

Kurdish Syrians demonstrate in the Syrian eastern city of Qamishli to demand the release of the jailed founder of the Kurdistan Workers Party, Abdullah Ocalan, in Turkey, on May 29, 2025.

Exclusive

Ankara’s direct talks with Syrian Kurds began last year in Europe, continue in Turkey

The talks are part of a sweeping effort to end Turkey’s decades-long war with the PKK and reshape Ankara’s relationship with Kurdish-led forces in Syria.

Amberin Zaman

By Amberin Zaman

Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

RAMI AL SAYED/AFP via Getty Images

Exclusive

US Syria envoy Barrack calls Kurdish SDF chief Kobane as Turkey mulls meeting

Sources tell Al-Monitor that Turkish officials have proposed a high-level meeting with SDF commander Mazlum Kobane in Damascus, contingent on the outcome of ongoing talks with Syria’s interim government.

Amberin Zaman

By Amberin Zaman

Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

Latest News

Turkey unveils prison reform bill, but Kurds say it falls short

Kurdish youths holds a poster of jailed PKK militant group leader Abdullah Ocalan during Newroz celebrations, on March 21, 2025, in Diyarbakir, Turkey.

EU sanctions Sunni factions accused of violence against Syria’s Alawites, Kurds

A handout picture from the Syrian state news agency SANA showing members of the security forces in Syria's coastal region

Turkey's Erdogan angles to retain power despite denying plans for third term

ATTILA KISBENEDEK/AFP via Getty Images

As Israel deconfliction talks proceed, Turkey and Syria discuss military ties during visits

OMAR ALBAW/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images

Kurdish women hold portraits of their missing sons on May 18, 2011, during a demonstration in Istanbul against the recent killing of 12 Kurdish rebels by security forces.

Many faces of motherhood in Turkey: From new Mothers Museum to 1,000th vigil of Saturday mothers

As a new museum in Ankara pays homage to motherhood, the mothers of the country remain a fractured group, divided by political lines and economic woes

Turkey's president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, looks on during a joint statement to the media in Baghdad on April 22, 2024.

What’s behind Erdogan’s pardoning of generals jailed over Turkey’s 1997 coup?

The move comes after a landmark meeting between the Turkish president and the main opposition leader that sparked hopes for political reforms in the country.

A boy waves a flag of jailed PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan as tens of thousands of Kurds gather during a rally of the DTP.

Turkey hands Kurdish leaders heavy sentences, dimming hopes of democratic change

Selahattin Demirtas, co-leader of the pro-Kurdish Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP), and others were sentenced to a combined 375 years in Turkish prisons. Demirtas has remained in prison since 2016.

Iraqi autonomous Kurdish region's peshmerga forces and fighters from the Yazidi minority, a local Kurdish-speaking community targeted in a brutal campaign by the Islamic State (IS) group, enter the western Iraqi city of Sinjar, in the Nineveh Province, on Nov. 13, 2015.

Turkey’s Fidan says Iraqi Sinjar must be ‘clear’ of PKK presence

The top Turkish diplomat’s comment comes as Ankara is ramping up its threats for a large-scale operation in northern Iraq.

This picture taken on April 25, 2023, shows a shrapnel-pocked walled in the village of Hiror near the Turkish border in northern Iraq's autonomous Kurdish region, where firefights occur between the Turkish army and fighters from the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK).

Turkey launches fresh airstrikes in Iraq as Erdogan renews threats for offensive

The strikes come as Ankara renews its threats of a fresh offensive in northern Iraq against the outlawed Kurdish militants and criticizes Iran and an Iraqi Kurdish political party for their lack of action to Turkey’s security concerns.

A Eurofighter Typhoon FGR4 belonging to the Royal Air Force shortly after takeoff.

Can warmer Germany-Turkey ties bring Ankara Eurofighters along with Airbuses?

Experts believe Turkish-German defense ties will see some strides following the German president’s much-hyped Turkey visit.

(L to R) Turkey's Transport Minister Abdulkadir Uraloglu, UAE's Energy Minister Suhail Mohamed al-Mazrouei, Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Iraq's Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani, Qatar's Minister of Transport Jassim bin Saif bin Ahmed al-Sulaiti, and Iraq's Transport Minister Razzaq Muhaibas al-Saadawi applaud during their meeting for the signing of the "Development Road" framework agreement on security, economy, and development in Baghdad on April 22, 2024. (Photo by Thaier Al-Sudani / POO

Breaking | Last Updated: June 3, 2024, 12:42 pm

Turkey, Iraq, UAE, Qatar ink $20B transportation deal during Erdogan visit

The Turkish president’s visit heralds a new chapter between the two neighbors after more than a decade of turbulent ties.

Islamic state women outside a Hawala money transfer shop at Roj camp in northeastern Syria, April 9, 2024.

Syria’s Kurds face ISIS threat, US indifference as Turkey destroys critical infrastructure

Turkish strikes have left hundreds of thousands without water and electricity, as well as undermining security at prisons and detention centers where tens of thousands of Islamic State fighters and their families are being held.

Ekrem Imamoglu, Istanbul mayor and the Republican People's Party (CHP) candidate, takes off his tie from atop a campaign bus while claiming victory surrounded by family members on April 1, 2024 in Istanbul, Turkey.

Five key takeaways from Turkey's local elections

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) came up short in recent local elections as Turks, including longtime AKP voters, expressed their dismay over the spiraling economy.

Ezgi Akin

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

Protesters demonstrate on Kibris Sehitleri Avenue in Izmir against the denial of Abdullah Zeydan's right to be elected and the handover of the mandate to AKP candidate Abdulahat Arvas, April 2, 2024.

Turkey’s election board reverses decision to block pro-Kurdish party's local win

Turkey’s high election board will unblock the pro-Kurdish party candidate’s election win amid protests in the country's Kurdish majority southeast.

Supporters of the pro-Kurdish DEM Party.

Turkey’s pro-Kurdish party slams annulment of election victory in southeast

The move, which sparked violent protest in the southeastern province of Van, is widely seen as a fresh crackdown on the country's pro-Kurdish party by Turkish authorities.

Ahead of March 31 municipal elections, Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu of the main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) addresses supporters during a campaign rally in Istanbul, March 22, 2024.

Will Erdogan’s fate be decided at Turkey's local polls?

An opposition victory in March 31 municipal elections, including in Istanbul, could shake up Turkey's political scene in unpredictable ways, perhaps even descent into full-blown authoritarianism.