Analysis
Smart, independent reporting on Turkey's politics, economy and foreign affairs.
A district governor in Ankara has been surprisingly reassigned following his religious references, political posturing against CHP members, and social media arguments. Meanwhile, the President of the Constitutional Court addressed jurists with similar religious references while he was demanding they ensure justice through religious frameworks.
The steps expected to be taken on the Kurdish peace process dominated discussions at the 106th anniversary of parliament's founding. President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan insisted that the process was proceeding 'honorably' in reply to the pro-Kurdish DEM Party’s demand for bolder legislative action, while the parliament speaker blamed delays on missed disarmament deadlines.
The sixth week of the mass corruption trial of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu and more than 400 co-defendants produced some of its most dramatic courtroom exchanges. İmamoğlu and the presiding judge continued sharp exchanges while the municipality’s housing company, KİPTAŞ, chair Ali Kurt implicated senior government figures in a land scheme, and the European Court of Human Rights formally demanded answers from Ankara.
The question of whether Turkey's Kurdish peace process — officially dubbed 'Terror-free Turkey' — has hit a deadlock is being asked more frequently, as tensions between the ruling AKP and DEM Party escalate over who bears responsibility for the lack of progress.
No legal steps have been taken despite calls across the spectrum for progress in the Kurdish peace process. President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and MHP Chair Devlet Bahçeli both called for momentum, and the DEM Party co-chair Bakırhan turned the question back on the government: 'Who exactly are they talking to?'
A second Turkish opposition party has voiced support for early elections, backing a call made by the CHP following a wave of detentions targeting CHP-run municipalities.
The DEM Party said calls for by-elections are not on its agenda.
The DEM Party is pushing the government to take legal steps to clarify PKK leader Abdullah Öcalan’s status, including the allocation of a house on İmralı Island, yet the government is buying time without providing clarity on the transition law.
Ebru Eroğlu, one of five lieutenants expelled from the Turkish Armed Forces (TAF) on the grounds of insubordination for raising their swords in the air and chanting the slogan “We are Mustafa Kemal’s soldiers” during the Military Academy’s swearing-in ceremony on August 30, 2024, lost the lawsuit to return to the military she filed against the Defense Ministry.
In the March 8 election in Baden-Württemberg, Green Party candidate Cem Özdemir came first, edging out the CDU, if only narrowly. So far, so unremarkable. The state has, after all, been governed by the Greens since 2011. But the picture changes when the victor, under the Green banner, is Cem Özdemir.
Parliament will take up legislation in response to the PKK’s decision to dissolve and lay down its arms agenda after the Ramadan holiday. PKK leader Abdullah Öcalan has called for the adoption of “peace laws” as a condition for transition. While the DEM Party insists that the legal framework should be adopted before the end of March, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has pointed to April, saying he expects the PKK to take more concrete steps.
NATO promptly reacted by condemning Iran after a missile targeted the Turkish border, saying: “We condemn Iran’s targeting of Türkiye. NATO stands firmly with all Allies, including Türkiye.'