When President Tayyip Erdoğan began reciting the opening verses of Surah Al-Fath in Arabic during his Justice and Development Party (AKP) parliamentary group meeting on December 25, amid chants of “Conqueror of Syria,” I wrote in my notebook “We’re going into Syria.” However, launching an operation against the PKK/YPG in Syria is one thing; conquest
Turkish Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya announced a sevenfold increase in the number of Syrian refugees voluntarily returning to their homeland in the last 15 days following the collapse of the 61-year-old Ba’ath regime in Syria and the flight of President Bashar al-Assad to Russia on December 8. Speaking to the Anadolu Agency (AA), Minister Yerlikaya
Last weekend, journalist Nevşin Mengü faced investigation over an interview, leading to her detention and subsequent release under judicial supervision with a travel ban. This weekend, journalist Özlem Gürses was investigated for a verbal slip during a live broadcast, resulting in detention, handcuffing, house arrest, and a travel ban. Additionally, news outlet T-24 came under
By Mehmet Öğütçü and Rainer Geiger The Middle East, scarred by years of political instability and economic upheaval, finds itself at a critical juncture. The crises in Syria and Lebanon lay bare the region’s fragility in stark terms. Yet, within this profound crisis lies a unique opportunity to rebuild the Middle East anew. No single
The Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) and Kurdish-issue focused DEM Party continue to confound their adversaries – and I mean this in a positive sense. Kurdish affairs have entered a new phase, particularly following the regime change in Syria. The most recent example of this shift was witnessed in the Turkish Parliament on December 17. DEM
While his loyal deputies of his oligarchic regime awaited an address from Bashar Assad, he reportedly fled to Moscow with his family. At the Doha press conference on December 8 when questioned about this, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan’s response was telling – rather than saying: “We don’t know,” he stated “I cannot comment, he’s
Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan announced that Türkiye has begun working on plans to facilitate the return of Syrian refugees, following major developments in Damascus where opposition forces have taken control of the capital and President Bashar al-Assad has reportedly left the country. Speaking at the Doha Forum 2024 in Qatar, Fidan outlined Türkiye’s vision
Like many others, I have been watching Türkiye’s policies regarding immigrants, refugees, and foreigners, especially the citizenship process, with growing concern for a long time. The lack of transparency, ambiguous statistics, and the failure to clearly articulate the purpose of the pursued policies have transformed this process into one of the worst examples in the
With Donald Trump announcing his victory in the US presidential race, Türkiye is closely watching developments in Washington. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan was among the first leaders to congratulate him. Trump’s first term was marked by an unconventional foreign policy that often relied on pragmatism and unexpected maneuvers, which led to a volatile relationship
Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan announced on the morning of October 10 that ships sent to evacuate Turkish citizens in Lebanon have departed for Mersin. The Turkish Armed Forces’ landing ships TCG Bayraktar and TCG Sancaktar, accompanied by the frigate TCG Salihresis, were sent to the port of Beirut two days ago with 300 tons of