Inside Turkey
300 articles
Inside Turkey
PROSECUTORS TARGET ANKARA MAYOR MANSUR YAVAŞ AMID WIDENING CRACKDOWN ON CHP MUNICIPALITIES
Prosecutors have requested permission from the Interior Ministry to investigate Ankara Mayor Mansur Yavaş, widely seen as a potential presidential contender against President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, over alleged misconduct and dereliction of duty, Oct. 10.
Inside Turkey
Premium
LAWYER ASSASSINATED IN FEUD BETWEEN DALTON AND CASPER GANGS
Serdar Öktem, a lawyer and a key defendant in the murder case of former Grey Wolves leader Sinan Ateş, was shot by masked assailants armed with long-barreled weapons in Istanbul traffic. Öktem died in hospital Oct. 6 from his injuries. Initial findings suggest the attack was carried out by the criminal group known as the Daltons.
Inside Turkey
Premium
KEY SUSPECT IN SINAN ATEŞ MURDER CASE SHOT DEAD
Serdar Öktem, a lawyer affiliated with the MHP and a defendant in the 2022 assassination case of former Grey Wolves leader Sinan Ateş, died after being shot outside his office by masked assailants on Oct. 6. The attackers opened fire while Öktem was inside his car in front of his office on Büyükdere Avenue in Istanbul’s Zincirlikuyu district. Surveillance video showed six bullet holes in the window of his car. Despite emergency medical intervention, Öktem succumbed to his injuries at the hospital.
Inside Turkey
Premium
RESIGNATIONS ROCK AKP ELAZIĞ BRANCH
After eight AKP provincial heads stepped down from duty, all members of the Elazığ Provincial Executive Committee, including the newly appointed acting head, İbrahim Sencer Selmanoğlu, resigned.
Inside Turkey
Premium
ANKARA MAYOR PUSHES TO REOPEN CORRUPTION FILES FROM HIS PREDECESSOR’S ERA
As the CHP-led Ankara municipality braces for a possible wave of prosecutions, Ankara Mayor Mansur Yavaş has pressed for charges to be brought against former Mayor Melih Gökçek and his son, Osman Gökçek, an AKP deputy and owner of Beyaz TV.
Inside Turkey
Premium
COMMITTEE GETS CLOSER TO END LISTENING
At the 13th meeting of the National Solidarity, Brotherhood, and Democracy Commission, lawyers were heard on Oct. 2 and Parliament Speaker Numan Kurtulmuş stated that the listening phase is about to end. Although not announced officially, women’s and children’s rights defenders as well as the intelligence service are expected to be heard in the coming days, before concluding the listening phase.
Inside Turkey
EYES ON ERDOĞAN’S MESSAGE, BAHÇELİ’S INITIATIVE AS NEW TERM BEGINS
As the Turkish Parliament begins its new legislative year on Oct. 1, attention will center on MHP Chair Devlet Bahçeli—who launched the “Terror-Free Turkey” peace initiative a year ago—and on President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s remarks regarding its future. Following a 70-day recess, Parliament will convene with a special General Assembly session at 2:00 p.m. As usual, Erdoğan will deliver an opening address, though the CHP will boycott the ceremony in protest of recent mayoral arrests and crackdowns on municipalities. This year, the political spotlight will remain on post-PKK arrangements such as the “Return Home” law, the “right to hope,” and amendments to the penal code.
Inside Turkey
DISSENTING VOICES IN THE AKP
After the CHP pushed back against a wave of lawsuits aimed at annulling its 2023 congress, some AKP-affiliated pundits—occasionally critical of their own party’s leadership—called for an end to the judicial crackdown.
Inside Turkey
AKP DISTRICT MAYOR REMOVED FROM OFFICE
Ahmet Sungur, the AKP mayor of Yahşihan in Kırıkkale, who was arrested on charges of extortion, has been removed from office.
Inside Turkey
Premium
COMMISSION DISCUSSES PUBLIC SUPPORT, PREPARES TO DRAFT PROPOSALS
The Parliament’s National Solidarity, Brotherhood and Democracy Commission listened to think-tankers and pollsters to test the ground for public support for the peace process. The 12th meeting of the commission established in the wake of PKK’s decision to disband and lay down arms took it to 50 days of work completed to date. The commission is now preparing to shift to drafting proposals in October.
Inside Turkey
Premium
RENEWED FOCUS ON YAVAŞ’S CANDIDACY AMID ATTACKS
The Ankara Municipality became the latest target of the crackdown against CHP-run municipalities, and CHP Chair Özgür Özel once again started highlighting Mayor Mansur Yavaş’s presidential candidacy. “Mansur Yavaş is seen as the strongest possible candidate if Ekrem İmamoğlu cannot run for presidency. Polls show he would beat (Recep Tayyip) Erdoğan,” Özel said. “It is clear that Yavaş is also being targeted with the same intent.”
Inside Turkey
ELECTION BOARD STANDS FIRM, SAYS CONGRESS CANNOT BE HALTED
The High Election Council (YSK) reaffirmed its authority on Sept. 24, rejecting a civil court ruling that sought to halt the CHP’s Istanbul Provincial Congress just minutes before it began.In response to the 45th Civil Court of First Instance's last-minute suspension order, the YSK convened urgently and issued a clear statement: “A congress already in progress cannot be stopped.”