Deep Dive
Long-form investigative and analytical reporting.
69 articles
Deep Dive
Premium
FROM NEWSROOMS TO FOOTBALL CLUBS, TURKEY’S DRUG PROBE WIDENS
The drug-using operation that started with artists in October, then extended to sports, media, business and politics, continues with the unlawful sharing of private conversations and denials of drug use despite forensic reports. The names of some prosecutors, politicians and advisers appeared in the investigation early on, yet media coverage has so far remained silent about them.
Deep Dive
Premium
CORRUPTION CRACKDOWN SHAKES BUSINESS AND POLITICS
A wave of asset seizures and prosecutions has shattered old certainties about which business groups are in favor with the government. The detentions and confiscations – some linked to the corruption probes into CHP municipalities – are raising hairs across the business world with observers uncertain whether it’s a genuine anti-corruption effort, a move to redistribute capital, or a sign of an internal power struggle within the presidency.
Deep Dive
Premium
PROMISES MADE, GAZA AVOIDED
The first meeting in six years between President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and U.S. President Donald Trump at the White House started with positive messages, as both refrained from directly addressing the issue of Gaza, on which they are at odds.Trump suggested the U.S. could lift sanctions on Turkey and allow it to buy U.S. F-35 jets, blocked due to Turkey’s procurement of S-400s from Russia, but added that he would like to see Turkey - a NATO member - stop buying Russian oil while the war in Ukraine continues. 'I'd like to have him stop buying any oil from Russia while Russia continues this rampage against Ukraine.'
Deep Dive
Premium
CHP FACES NEW SETBACK AS COURT HALTS ISTANBUL CONGRESS PROCESS
Turkey’s main opposition CHP suffered a fresh blow as a court dissolved its largest provincial board in Istanbul over cash payment claims. The party now awaits either a Sept. 5 ruling by the Supreme Election Board (YSK) or a Sept.15 court hearing that could unseat Chair Özgür Özel’s administration. The CHP, which came to power at a November 2023 congress with the slogan “Change,” now risks being replaced by the team of former chair Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu. The 45th Civil Court of First Instance ruled that irregularities in the October 2023 Istanbul provincial congress were “approximately proven.” The court suspended provincial chair Özgür Çelik, the executive and disciplinary boards, and 196 delegates. Attention has now turned to another court set to review the CHP’s 2023 congress in Ankara. “The Istanbul decision is null and void. We do not recognize it,” said Özel, vowing not to hand over CHP’s Istanbul building to the appointed administration. The Istanbul administration also started a stage-in protest in front of the building for 24 hours.
Deep Dive
Premium
ERDOĞAN AND BAHÇELİ MEET AS SECOND CLOSE ASSOCIATE OF BAHÇELİ ARRESTED
İsmet Sayhan, the former head of the state-owned Mechanical and Chemical Industry Corporation (MKE) and a close associate of MHP Chair Devlet Bahçeli, was arrested in Ankara. Amid speculation that the detention was a sign of cracks in the ruling alliance, Bahçeli and President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan met in Bitlis’s Ahlat and Malazgirt on Aug. 25–26, posing for cameras to signal the strength of their alliance in their first meeting since July 10. They even listened to folk songs together.
Deep Dive
Premium
FROM MOBSTERS TO A HITMAN: NEW TWIST IN ISTANBUL MUNICIPALITY CASE
The corruption probe into Istanbul and other CHP-run municipalities has taken a new turn, extending beyond politicians, lawyers, mobsters, and journalists to include a hitman. The alleged hitman is said to have acted on the instructions of Selahattin Yılmaz, a figure backed by MHP Chair Devlet Bahçeli. The latest detentions targeted several lawyers and legal experts, whose ultra-luxurious offices and lavish lifestyles raised questions, with images suggesting close links to the government.
Deep Dive
Premium
DEBATE ON FORMING KURDISH ISSUE COMMISSION ENDS AS NEW CLASHES BEGIN
As of July 31, all parties represented in Turkish Parliament—except the İYİ Party—have appointed members to join the parliamentary commission on the Kurdish issue, ending debates over which parties would take seats. Attention now turns to the commission’s roadmap, including its official name, agenda, timeline, and decision-making rules. The İYİ Party’s decision to abstain from participation has complicated the calculation of an absolute majority. While Parliament Speaker Numan Kurtulmuş initially announced that the commission would have 51 members, the İYİ Party’s absence reduces the number to 48, raising debate over whether the three-fifths majority should be calculated based on 51 or 48 members.
Deep Dive
DEM PARTY DENIES ERDOĞAN’S ‘TRIPLE ALLIANCE’ CLAIM
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s remark about a “triple alliance” between the AKP, MHP, and DEM Party has drawn a sharp rebuke from DEM Co-Chair Tülay Hatimoğulları, who said the comment misrepresented the party’s role in the ongoing disarmament process.
Deep Dive
Premium
AFTER ISTANBUL, IT IS IZMIR'S TURN
A new front has been opened in the judicial assault on the main opposition CHP, shifting the focus from Istanbul to the party’s stronghold in Izmir. The latest set of raids came as Izmir fought off forest fires and as the CHP prepared to hold a major rally in Saraçhane—home to Istanbul's Municipality—marking the 100th day of Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu’s pre-trial detention. They also followed hard on the heels of a court hearing that could have annulled the party’s 2023 congress.