Analysis Why Turkey is drawing the line at defense in its support for Saudi Arabia Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia are forcing Mecca pact signatories to quickly operationalize their agreement, but are unlikely to draw Turkey into direct action against the Iran-backed group. By Ezgi Akin In Ankara, reporting on diplomacy, EU-Turkey ties, NATO
Analysis Can Turkey’s Bashiqa withdrawal pave the way for deeper Iraq ties? Ankara hopes the planned handover of its Bashiqa base will deepen security cooperation with Baghdad and unlock broader economic ties, but implementation hinges on restoring Iraqi state authority in Sinjar, where previous efforts to remove armed groups have stalled. By Barin Kayaoglu In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security
Newsletter: Turkey Turkey’s UNGA scorecard Erdogan’s New York trip yielded a breakthrough with Iraq but little movement on ties with Washington. By Ezgi Akin In Ankara, reporting on diplomacy, EU-Turkey ties, NATO
Newsletter: City Pulse Istanbul Galerist turns 25 with a ‘Labour of Love’ Also this week: Italian garden dining, Anatolian carpets and Europe’s unfinished frontiers By Nazlan Ertan In Izmir and Istanbul, reporting on culture
Newsletter: Daily Briefing Xi, Trump set to talk Iran By Ezgi Akin In Ankara, reporting on diplomacy, EU-Turkey ties, NATO
Newsletter: Business & Tech Washington’s Iran airline squeeze By Jack Dutton In Bristol, reporting on regional business, climate change, AI, tech
Hamas uses backchannel to Tel Aviv According to Hamas sources, the Islamist movement sent an indirect message to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and not for the first time. Palestine
Why is Turkey buying more gas than it needs from Iran? Why does Turkey want to double its gas imports from Iran when it's already importing more gas than it consumes? Turkey
Erdogan counting on elections to recoup from scandals Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan is banking on the polls, not the courts, to vindicate himself from the current allegations of corruption. Turkey
Turkey’s warring personality cults In the absence of well-grounded institutions, politics in Turkey often devolves into a battle of personalities, as we see now between Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Islamic scholar Fethullah Gulen. Turkey
Sisi not Egypt’s civilian Messiah Whoever becomes Egypt’s next president must do three things, including bringing all political parties together if Egypt is to be able to rebuild its economy and political institutions. Egypt
Barrel bombings cause mass evacuation in east Aleppo An exclusive first hand report on how fearful residents, along with opposition forces, have fled east Aleppo en masse as the Syrian government's barrel bombing campaign shows no sign of relenting. Syria
Turkmen caught between Turkey and Iraqi Kurdistan Iraqi Turkmen are getting pressure from the Turkish government to work more closely with the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) of Iraq. Iraq
Turkey’s Armenians in crisis over patriarch A rift over the spiritual leadership of Turkey’s Armenian community exposes the Turkish state’s political machinations in dealing with this minority. Turkey
Erdogan enraged The corruption probe and alleged phone leaks between Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his advisers raise grave concerns about Turkey’s political direction. Turkey
Another sensational scandal rocks Turkey Pro-government dailies are reporting a massive wiretapping scandal. Turkey
The peril of escalation in Syria Edward Dark writes that Aleppans will pay the price for any escalation in the war; the UN Security Council votes for humanitarian assistance and calls for greater cooperation to confront al-Qaeda in Syria; 16 female journalists cover the Middle East; and exorcism in the Gaza Strip. Palestine
Turkey's elections likely to increase political turmoil Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan plans to keep the heat on his political opponents heading into the March 30 local elections. Turkey