Analysis
Smart, independent reporting on Turkey's politics, economy and foreign affairs.
Journalists will take to the streets on Oct. 24 to urge the government to end the detentions, arrests, blockages, access bans and all kinds of pressure on media members as the crackdown escalated after the liquidation of investment funds.
Fresh waves of judicial probes and detentions targeting opposition-led municipalities across Turkey are reshaping the country's local political landscape.
Reports of police mistreatment and physical abuse during police detention are rising, as figures, such as journalists and comedians after detentions or arrests speak louder.
In the latest hearing of the Istanbul Municipality corruption trial on July 7, jailed Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu was not brought to the courtroom, and detentions of dissident journalists continued in Istanbul while the capital Ankara began hosting the NATO Summit.
The word of the week is operasyon, which is hardly surprising. Ahead of the NATO summit, Turkish authorities announced an operation resulting in hundreds of detentions.
Hundreds of defendants in the Istanbul Municipality trial can collect pensions, easing the financial strain many have suffered since the start of pretrial detentions in March 2025.
The recent shifts in the Turkish media landscape, driven by security operations and detentions, have begun to reshape discourse over who might replace President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in the future.
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 television drama industry is facing an unprecedented crisis as soaring inflation and domestic regulatory pressures threaten its global standing, alongside suppressive measures, including the detention of manager Ayşe Barım and the ongoing detentions in a drug and prostitution case that has labeled many figures from the sector.
A wave of asset seizures and prosecutions has shattered old certainties about which business groups are in favor with the government. The detentions and confiscations – some linked to the corruption probes into CHP municipalities – are raising hairs across the business world with observers uncertain whether it’s a genuine anti-corruption effort, a move to redistribute capital, or a sign of an internal power struggle within the presidency.
Akın Gürlek, Istanbul’s chief public prosecutor known for ordering probes and detentions against the opposition CHP, spoke on camera for the first time at the opening of the new judicial year. He said indictments related to the Istanbul Municipality would be ready in September and October.
The corruption probe into Istanbul and other CHP-run municipalities has taken a new turn, extending beyond politicians, lawyers, mobsters, and journalists to include a hitman. The alleged hitman is said to have acted on the instructions of Selahattin Yılmaz, a figure backed by MHP Chair Devlet Bahçeli. The latest detentions targeted several lawyers and legal experts, whose ultra-luxurious offices and lavish lifestyles raised questions, with images suggesting close links to the government.