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May 14, 2026

Ankara 8:29 pm

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Mazloum 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.

Interview

Syrian Kurdish commander Kobane says Turkey visit ‘in the making,’ Ocalan meeting possible

The SDF commander-in-chief reflected on a fragile integration deal with Damascus, growing Kurdish backlash and ongoing talks with Turkey as questions mount over Rojava’s political future.

Mazloum Kobane

Mazloum Kobane

SDF commander in chief

Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, right, and Armenia’s Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan shake hands before a meeting at Prague Castle in Prague, Czech Republic, Thursday, Oct. 6, 2022.

Turkey, Armenia to launch direct trade in normalization push: What to know

The move removes a decades-old reexport mechanism routed largely through Georgia as Ankara and Yerevan step up normalization efforts.

The helicopter of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan lands on Abdulhamid Han drill ship, the fourth built by Turkey, in Mersin on Aug. 9, 2022, before being sent for gas exploration to an undisputed area in the Mediterranean Sea, south of Gazipasa.

New Turkey maritime draft bill fuels EastMed tensions with Greece, Cyprus

Turkey’s draft maritime bill seeks to formalize Ankara’s claims in the Aegean, Eastern Mediterranean and Black seas, raising tensions with Greece and Cyprus over contested maritime boundaries and offshore energy rights.

Turkish Red Crescent's cars and trucks cross the Turkish border as they leave the Syrian city of Tel Abyad on Oct. 19, 2019, in Akcakale, Turkey.

Turkey's border reopening unlocks new sphere of influence in Syria

Turkey reopened the Akcakale-Tell Abyad crossing on Monday, ending an 11-year closure along the Syria border.

Latest News

Analysis

From drones to deterrence: Turkey's ICBM missile signals bigger ambitions

ISTANBUL, TURKEY - MAY 06: A man poses for a photograph in front of the newly unveiled, Turkish made intercontinental ballistic missile Yildirimhan at the SAHA International Defence and Aerospace Expo on May 06, 2026 in Istanbul, Turkey. The International Defence and Aerospace Exhibition, showcased Turkish and foreign companies new products and technology. The expo was dominated by UAV products as modern warfare increasingly shifts to drone and unmanned technologies. (Photo by Chris McGrath/Getty Images)

Barin Kayaoglu

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

Culture

How ‘dog mom’ vacuum cleaner ad sparked culture war in Turkey

MURAT KOCABAS/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images

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

An Israeli soldier stands guard next to an Iron Dome rocket interceptor battery deployed near the northern Israeli city of Haifa January 28, 2013. Any sign that Syria's grip on its chemical weapons is slipping as it battles an armed uprising could trigger Israeli military strikes, Israel's vice premier said on Sunday. A military spokesman confirmed reports that two Iron Dome batteries were moved to the Haifa area but insisted this was part of a routine of rotating these systems. REUTERS/Baz Ratner (ISRAEL -

Hezbollah Denies Ownership Of Downed Drone

Ali Hashem asks, If Hezbollah was not responsible for the drone downed over Israel, who was?

U.S. Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel speaks with reporters after reading a statement on chemical weapon use in Syria during a news conference in Abu Dhabi April 25, 2013. Hagel on Thursday said the U.S. intelligence community believes the Syrian government has used sarin gas on a small scale against rebels trying to overthrow the government of Bashar al-Assad. REUTERS/Jim Watson/Pool (UNITED ARAB EMIRATES - Tags: POLITICS) - RTXYZQ8

US Considers Next Steps in Syria

The Obama administration, which acknowledges Syria probably used chemical weapons, is likely to use the information to rally Russian support at the Security Council.

Lebanon's Hezbollah members carry the coffin of a Hezbollah member during his funeral in Ansar village near Baalbek city October 8, 2012. Hezbollah gave no details about their deaths but sources in Baalbek said they and another Hezbollah man were killed near a Syrian border town where rebels are fighting Assad's forces. REUTERS/Ahmed Shalha (LEBANON - Tags: CIVIL UNREST POLITICS) - RTR38X92

Hezbollah Base Questions Support for Assad

With Hezbollah members increasingly dying in Syria, some of the party’s base are re-evaluating its role in the conflict, writes an Al-Monitor correspondent in Beirut.

Turkey's Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan addresses members of parliament from his ruling AK Party (AKP) during a meeting at the Turkish parliament in Ankara June 25, 2013. Turkish anti-terrorism police detained 20 people in raids in the capital Ankara on Tuesday in connection with weeks of anti-government protests across the country, media reports said. The unrest began at the end of May when police used force against campaigners opposed to plans to redevelop a central Istanbul park. The protest spiralled int

Israeli-Turkish Reconciliation Not a Done Deal

Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan's aspirations to become leader of the Sunni Muslim world could hinder rebuilding strategic ties with Israel, argues Ben Caspit.

People light candles during a special prayer marking the anniversary of mass killings of Armenians in Ottoman Empire in 1915, in the Armenian Church in Jerusalem's Old City April 24, 2012. Armenia, backed by many historians and parliaments, says about 1.5 million Christian Armenians were killed in what is now eastern Turkey during World War One in a deliberate policy of genocide ordered by the Ottoman government. Successive Turkish governments and the vast majority of Turks feel the charge of genocide is an

Israel: The Politics Behind The Armenian Genocide

On the eve of the 98th anniversary of the Armenian genocide, Israel continues denying the event in favor of having better political relations with Turkey, writes Akiva Eldar.

Turkey's Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan (L) shakes hands with Archbishop Nourhan Manougian, Patriarchal Vicar of the Armenian Patriarchate of Jerusalem, during an international conference on the Arab awakening and peace in the Middle East in Istanbul September 7, 2012. REUTERS/Murad Sezer (TURKEY - Tags: POLITICS RELIGION) - RTR37O19

Is Turkey Overcoming The Armenian Taboo?

Turkey is changing from a country where the phrase "Armenian question" was never mentioned to one where groups are marching in the street using the term "Armenian genocide," writes Orhan Kemal Cengiz.

U.S. Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel (L) and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Army General Martin Dempsey (R) testify before the House Appropriations Defense Subcommittee in Washington April 16, 2013. REUTERS/Gary Cameron (UNITED STATES - Tags: POLITICS MILITARY) - RTXYNPQ

US Not Considering Arms To Syrian Rebels

The Obama administration resists congressional pressure for military aid to the Syrian rebels; Al-Monitor writers take on the case of Fazil Say and the resignation of Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad.

Turkish classical pianist Fazil Say performs during a concert in Ankara October 14, 2010. Internationally acclaimed Turkish classical pianist Fazil Say goes on trial on charges of insulting Muslim religious values in comments he posted on Twitter. REUTERS/Stringer (TURKEY - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST SOCIETY) - RTR399ZY

Turkey’s New 'Sunni Islam' Taboo

The 10-month suspended prison sentence of pianist Fazil Say on grounds of his (re)tweets is the signal for an introduction of a new taboo called “Sunni Islam” in Turkey, writes Kadri Gursel.

Turkey's Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan makes his address during a meeting with the 'wise people' commission in Istanbul April 4, 2013, in this picture provided by the Turkish Prime Minister's Press Office. Erdogan chaired an inaugural meeting of the 'wise people' commission, who will be consulted on a peace process with Kurdish militants. The commission is made up of academics, journalists and performing artists, and established by the government to promote the peace process nationwide. REUTERS/Kayhan Ozer/

Erdogan Asks 'Wise People' To Make Case for Peace

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has chosen a delegation of "Wise People" to convince Turkish citizens about the benefits of his Kurdish peace plan, writes Kadri Gursel.

Pro-Kurdish BDP party supporters attend a rally in support of Syrian Kurds in Viransehir February 3, 2013. REUTERS/Osman Orsal (TURKEY - Tags: POLITICS CONFLICT CIVIL UNREST) - RTR3DAO0

Turkey’s Kurdish Initiative May Affect Syria's Kurds

Cengiz Candar writes on the relationship between Turkey's peace initiative and its policies in Syria.

Sculptures are seen on a hill near the Israeli Syrian border in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights March 24, 2013. Israel said it fired into Syria on Sunday and destroyed a machinegun position in the Golan Heights from where shots had been fired at Israeli soldiers in a further spillover of the Syrian civil war along a tense front. Israel captured the Golan Heights in the 1967 Middle East war and annexed it in 1981 in a move not recognized internationally. REUTERS/Baz Ratner (MILITARY POLITICS) - RTXXW5G

Israel and Muslim Brotherhood Face the Same Enemy

As Israel prepares to celebrate its 65th Independence Day free of conventional threats, Iran's nuclear threat still looms, writes Alon Ben David.

Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal makes a speech during the congress of Turkey's Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan's ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) in Ankara September 30, 2012. Erdogan trumpeted Turkey's credentials as a rising democratic power on Sunday, saying his Islamist-rooted ruling party had become an example to the Muslim world after a decade in charge. Leaders including Egyptian President Mohamed Mursi, Kyrgyz President Almazbek Atambayev and Masoud Barzani, president of Iraq's autonomous Kurdis

Israeli Apology Pushes Hamas Away From Turkey

Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu’s apology to Turkish counterpart Erdogan over the Mavi Marmara incident has brought Turkey closer to Israel but pushed Hamas away, writes Adnan Abu Amer.