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CHP MAYORS FACE COURT AS WIDE-RANGING CORRUPTION TRIAL STARTS
Deep Dive May 29, 2026

CHP MAYORS FACE COURT AS WIDE-RANGING CORRUPTION TRIAL STARTS

Hearings have begun in a corruption probe involving municipalities run by the main opposition CHP, following investigations launched in March 2025. The case marks the first major trial stemming from the allegations, ahead of a separate prosecution involving Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu that is set to begin on March 9. The CHP’s legal strategy and the court’s approach to the defendants are expected to shape Turkey’s political agenda over the many years the trials are expected to take.

Editorial Team
CORRUPTION CLAIMS FADE AS INDICTMENT TARGETS POLITICAL GOALS
Deep Dive May 29, 2026

CORRUPTION CLAIMS FADE AS INDICTMENT TARGETS POLITICAL GOALS

The indictment against President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s chief rival, Ekrem İmamoğlu, not only accuses the jailed Istanbul mayor of corruption, but also targets the CHP, laying bare the political nature of the case. The charge sheet alleges that the CHP is being taken over by a criminal organization and on that basis prosecutors also notified the Court of Cassation that there may be grounds to close the main opposition party.

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DEADLOCK OVER COMMISSION’S VISIT TO ÖCALAN CONTINUES
Deep Dive May 29, 2026

DEADLOCK OVER COMMISSION’S VISIT TO ÖCALAN CONTINUES

The parliamentary commission formed to pave the way for a new Kurdish peace process remains stuck over whether its members should visit jailed PKK leader Abdullah Öcalan. A planned session of the commission has been postponed once again, even as hopes rise for the release of imprisoned Kurdish politician Selahattin Demirtaş following a third ruling by the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR).

Editorial Team
AFTER CORRUPTION CASES, ESPIONAGE CHARGES KEEP PRESSURE ON CHP
Inside Turkey May 29, 2026

AFTER CORRUPTION CASES, ESPIONAGE CHARGES KEEP PRESSURE ON CHP

The brief respite after a court rejected a bid to unseat main opposition CHP Chair Özgür Özel and annul the party’s 2023 congress has now given way to a widening espionage probe. Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu and his campaign director Necati Özkan were rearrested on espionage charges, while a trustee was appointed to TELE1 television channel and its editor-in-chief, Merdan Yanardağ, was also taken into custody on Oct. 24.

Editorial Team
CHP ISTANBUL CONGRESS HELD DESPITE LAST MINUTE JUDICIAL CHALLENGE
Inside Turkey May 29, 2026

CHP ISTANBUL CONGRESS HELD DESPITE LAST MINUTE JUDICIAL CHALLENGE

The CHP’s efforts to thwart the judicial crackdown through holding congresses once again faced obstacles.Nevertheless, CHP Istanbul provincial head Özgür Çelik, who has been ousted by court decision, was re-elected, after the Supreme Election Council rejected the court’s efforts to stop the congress.

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CHP SEES HOPE IN ANKARA DECISION BUT FUTURE STILL IN LIMBO
Deep Dive May 29, 2026

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.

Editorial Team
BALL IS IN PARLIAMENT’S COURT
Deep Dive May 29, 2026

BALL IS IN PARLIAMENT’S COURT

Turkey’s newly formed National Solidarity, Brotherhood and Democracy Commission—tasked with preparing the framework for the PKK’s disarmament—has held its first meeting thanks to a rare cross-party consensus in parliament. The eight-hour session marked a symbolic start to what could become a historic process.

Editorial Team
REASONED VERDICT RELEASED 13 MONTHS AFTER SENTENCING
Inside Turkey May 29, 2026

REASONED VERDICT RELEASED 13 MONTHS AFTER SENTENCING

Thirteen months after sentencing, the Ankara 22nd High Criminal Court has released its reasoned verdict in the high-profile Kobani trial, in which former HDP Co-Chairs Selahattin Demirtaş and Figen Yüksekdağ were sentenced to 42 and 30 years in prison, respectively.

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COURT RULING OUSTS ÖZEL, HANDS CHP BACK TO KILIÇDAROĞLU
Deep Dive May 21, 2026

COURT RULING OUSTS ÖZEL, HANDS CHP BACK TO KILIÇDAROĞLU

A fresh blow has landed on the CHP as a court annulled the party's 2023 congress — the elective gathering at which the party leadership, including its chair, changed hands following an election defeat — ordering the party's administration to revert to its pre-congress configuration.

Editorial Team
HALKI EMERGES AGAIN AS A TEST OF TURKEY’S RELIGIOUS POLITICS
Foreign Affairs May 15, 2026

HALKI EMERGES AGAIN AS A TEST OF TURKEY’S RELIGIOUS POLITICS

A historic sanatorium on Heybeliada — the island also known as Halki — is set to be transferred to the Directorate of Religious Affairs for the second time, after a previous transfer was annulled by a court. The move comes as the same island is at the center of another religious question: the possible reopening of the Greek Orthodox Halki Seminary.

Editorial Team
IMAMOĞLU SHUTTLES BETWEEN SILIVRI COURTROOMS
Inside Turkey May 15, 2026

IMAMOĞLU SHUTTLES BETWEEN SILIVRI COURTROOMS

Ekrem İmamoğlu, the detained Istanbul mayor and the CHP's presidential candidate, shuttled between two courtrooms at the Silivri complex — and both hearings produced developments that cut against the prosecution's narrative.

Editorial Team