WAVE OF CUTBACKS HITS TURKISH MEDIA AMID ECONOMIC TURMOIL
A series of layoffs, delayed salaries, office closures and suspension of broadcasts at Turkish media outlets has sparked alarm in the sector.
Analysis
In-Depth Analysis
Smart, independent reporting on Turkey's politics, economy and foreign affairs.
AS LONG-WAITED INDICTMENT EMERGES, CHP LAUNCHES COUNTEROFFENSIVE
Amid a sustained crackdown on opposition-run municipalities, CHP Chair Özgür Özel has begun unveiling alleged corruption within government-affiliated municipalities. Özel disclosed specific dates, figures, locations, names—and even codes linked to a secret witness—to support his claims. His announcement follows the release of the first indictment involving businessperson Aziz İhsan Aktaş, whose testimony led to the arrest of seven CHP mayors.
BULDAN’S ÖCALAN COMMENTS SPARK POLITICAL FIRESTORM
Pervin Buldan, head of the DEM’s İmralı delegation, faced strong backlash after relaying PKK leader Abdullah Öcalan’s criticism of media rhetoric and voicing a proposed delegation visit to İmralı Island, Oct. 10.
PHOTOS REVEAL RIVALRY BETWEEN AKP AND CHP OVER OTHER OPPOSITION PARTIES
The photos taken at the start of the new legislative year, in which President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan posed with chairs of opposition parties, including AKP breakaways, in the absence of the CHP, revealed the contest between the AKP and the CHP to win their support. After the images went viral, Erdoğan renewed his call for a new constitution more forcefully, while his ally, MHP Chair Devlet Bahçeli, insisted that the parliamentary commission visit PKK leader Abdullah Öcalan in İmralı and urged Öcalan to call on the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) to lay down arms. The same day, slogans in Kurdish for Öcalan’s freedom — “Biji Serok Apo” — were chanted at the DEM Party’s group meeting. The party, which holds the third-largest number of seats in parliament, could significantly alter the political dynamics if it supports a constitutional change. While the photos of opposition figures with Erdoğan drew sharp criticism in the opposition media, concerned about alienating them, CHP Chair Özgür Özel personally called all opposition party chairs to ease the row.
ERDOĞAN SIGNALS NEW PHASE IN KURDISH ISSUE AS CHP SKIPS PARLIAMENT OPENING
The new legislative year of the Turkish Parliament opened without the CHP, which boycotted the session in protest at President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and the ongoing crackdown—starting debate over parliamentary legitimacy. Erdoğan swiftly countered the criticism, declaring that “legitimacy comes from the people.” He followed his remarks with a symbolic gesture: shaking hands with all parliamentary group leaders, including first-time photo-ops after many years with the heads of AKP offshoots DEVA and the Gelecek Party. Notably, Erdoğan coolly used his address to tell the pro-Kurdish DEM Party that the next phase on the Kurdish issue will be implementation. Praising the work of the National Solidarity, Brotherhood and Democracy Commission for holding 12 meetings so far with broad participation from political parties, Erdoğan said, “Once the commission completes its work, we will undoubtedly have very important findings in hand. The next phase will be the implementation of the proposals raised within the commission, as a result of consultation and consensus.”
ASSETS OF CONFESSOR SEIZED
Trustees have been appointed to 23 companies owned by Aziz İhsan Aktaş, a key figure in operations targeting CHP-run municipalities, and the companies have been transferred to the Savings Deposit Insurance Fund (TMSF).
END OF ALİ KOÇ ERA AT FENERBAHÇE
Ali Koç, a member of Turkey’s wealthiest business family, lost control after seven years at soccer club Fenerbahçe, ousted by businessperson Sadettin Saran. Saran became the 38th president of the yellow-and-blue club, winning 12,325 of 24,393 valid votes at the Extraordinary Elective General Assembly.
HIGH-STAKES DIPLOMACY: ERDOĞAN’S WHITE HOUSE VISIT AND ITS STRATEGIC COSTS
There is a way of establishing a working relationship with U.S. President Donald Trump. First you have to make sure you see him as a smart, respectable world leader. That’s the easy part. Then you have to lure him with trade deals, making sure he is the winning side. Therefore, it comes as no surprise when Turkey unilaterally dropped its retaliatory tariffs on U.S. products on Sept. 22, a few days before the scheduled meeting between President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and U.S. President Donald Trump at the White House. Buzzwords are important for Trump, and tariff is one of them. The tariffs, which covered products including passenger cars, fruit, rice, tobacco, alcoholic beverages, solid fuels, and chemical products, were introduced in 2018 in response to U.S. tariffs on steel and aluminum imports enacted during Trump's first term in office.
CHP FACES INTENSIFYING CRACKDOWN DESPITE LEGAL REPRIEVE
The CHP has received a brief reprieve from ongoing legal turmoil as a lawsuit seeking to annul its 38th Ordinary Congress—held on November 4–5, 2023—was postponed to Oct. 24. The delay offers the party a short breathing space. Now it is preparing for a new extraordinary congress on Sept. 21 that might address some of the legal challenges it faces. But the crackdown against CHP municipalities is pressing on. In the latest development, Bayrampaşa Mayor Hasan Mutlu became the 12th CHP mayor arrested in Istanbul—and the 18th nationwide—since the crackdown began in October 2024.
INTELLIGENCE CHIEF MEETS WITH SYRIAN PRESIDENT SHARAA
At a time when the U.S. is mediating talks between Israel and Syria in London, the head of Turkish Intelligence İbrahim Kalın met with President Ahmed al‑Sharaa in the Syrian capital, Damascus.
TEKİN
In Old Turkic, tegin was the stuff of inscriptions and dynasties, carved into the 8th-century Orkhon Inscriptions beside names like Kül Tegin. It meant prince, heir, royal son. However, Mahmud al-Kaşgarî, the first lexicographer of the Turkish language, reminds us that these gilded offspring referred to themselves as “kul,” or servant, when addressing their father in a ritual display of humility, claiming that “tekin” meant “humble servant.”
CHP SEES HOPE IN ANKARA DECISION BUT FUTURE STILL IN LIMBO
An Ankara court on Sept. 11 overturned the ruling that appointed an interim committee to run the main opposition party’s Istanbul branch. According to the CHP, the decision from the Ankara 3rd Civil Court of First Instance effectively nullified the earlier ruling of the Istanbul 45th Civil Court, in line with CHP’s argument that only an Ankara court can rule since the party’s headquarters are in Ankara. Yet, the decision can be appealed in a higher court.