SYRIA REQUESTS MILITARY SUPPORT FROM TURKEY
The Syrian government has requested support from Turkey to strengthen the country's defense capabilities and fight terrorist organizations, particularly Islamic State, the Defense Ministry said.
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CO-CHAIR: DEM WILL REMAIN IN OPPOSITION REGARDLESS OF PROCESS OUTCOME
Ahead of CHP’s hesitations to join the parliamentary commission, DEM Party Co-Chair Tuncer Bakırhan said that the party will maintain its opposition identity even if the process is successful. Bakırhan stated that the matter will eventually be brought before the DEM and that they will not approve the constitutional amendment if it does not satisfy their demands regarding the Kurdish issue, democratization, women's rights, youth, Alevis' right to equal citizenship, economic justice, and the environment.
SYMBOL OF FEAR RETURNS
One of the prosecutors overseeing the case against Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu has come under fire after CHP Chair Özgür Özel revealed that the prosecutor displays a model of a Beyaz Toros—a car widely associated with disappearances and state violence in the 1990s. İmamoğlu, who has been held at Silivri Prison since his March 19 arrest, recounted the incident during an interview with journalist Ruşen Çakır of Medyascope as he visited the Istanbul Mayor in prison. İmamoğlu said the prosecutor, who took his testimony following the sweeping police operation, placed a symbolic image of the white Renault Toros on his desk and ended the interrogation by saying: “Tomorrow you become president, then you judge us.”
MOST SIGNIFICANT SHAKE-UP IN ARMY'S PENSION FUND SINCE 2016 COUP ATTEMPT
In the most dramatic leadership overhaul at OYAK since the 2016 coup attempt, retired Lt. Gen. Zekai Aksakallı—once a key figure in thwarting the coup—has been named chairman of the Turkish Armed Forces' influential pension fund and commercial powerhouse. OYAK announced the surprise changes just two months after its general assembly on May 17.
ŞİMŞEK SAYS RENTERS ARE MINORITY
As millions of retirees await a long-promised pension hike, Treasury and Finance Minister Mehmet Şimşek appeared to downplay the pressure caused by rising rents. Speaking at the ruling AKP’s Kızılcahamam retreat, Şimşek said: “72% of the population owns their home, 28% rent, and only 14% of retirees are renters,” according to pro-government columnist Abdulkadir Selvi.
MEHMET MURAT ÇALIK: FROM BEYLİKDÜZÜ TO PRISON WITH İMAMOĞLU
The paths of Ekrem İmamoğlu and Mehmet Murat Çalık first crossed in 2014. İmamoğlu had just been elected mayor of Beylikdüzü. Çalık began working with him as deputy mayor. In 2019, when İmamoğlu became Mayor of Istanbul, Çalık was elected mayor of Beylikdüzü in the same elections.
ŞİMŞEK SAYS RENTERS ARE MINORITY
As millions of retirees await a long-promised pension hike, Treasury and Finance Minister Mehmet Şimşek appeared to downplay the pressure caused by rising rents. Speaking at the ruling AKP’s Kızılcahamam retreat, Şimşek said: “72% of the population owns their home, 28% rent, and only 14% of retirees are renters,” according to pro-government columnist Abdulkadir Selvi.
NEW TERM IN KANAL 7
The former head of Turkey’s media watchdog RTÜK, Zahid Akman, who served as editor-in-chief of pro-government broadcaster Kanal 7 for many years, has been replaced by Kanal 7 Ankara bureau chief Mehmet Acet.
US ENVOY SHIFTS TONE ON YPG BUT ISRAEL NOT IN TUNE
A Turkish ambassador serving in a Central Asian country before 2016 was criticized for not showing enough interest in the Gülenists schools. The envoy received several phone calls from AKP officials complaining he was not, for instance, visiting the schools frequently enough.
TURKEY HIGHLIGHTS ROLE IN SUWEIDA CEASEFIRE AMID REGIONAL TENSIONS
Despite strained ties with Israel following the October 7 attacks, Turkey has emphasized its key role in brokering a ceasefire in Syria’s Suweida province, where fighting between Israel-backed Druze groups and Bedouin Arab tribes had escalated to involve regime forces.
GROK
The word of the week is Grok — not a Turkish word by birth, but one that, thanks to recent events, has become a household name from Izmir to Iğdır.
BLACKOUT SHOWDOWN: HALK TV WINS STAY, SÖZCÜ TV GOES DARK
An Ankara court has suspended a 10-day broadcasting blackout imposed on Halk TV, but SZC TV, which received the same penalty, has gone off air after a separate court upheld the sanction.