Analysis
Smart, independent reporting on Turkey's politics, economy and foreign affairs.
Interior Minister Mustafa Çiftçi signaled a new way to accelerate the voluntary return of Syrians from Turkey, saying the government is considering lifting their temporary protection status and easing visa rules instead.
Turkey made simultaneous overtures to Iraq and Syria at a critical moment for the peace process, as the government prepares to submit the bill to parliament before the summer recess. National Intelligence Organization (MİT) chief İbrahim Kalın completed a three-day tour of Iraq while Interior Minister Mustafa Çiftçi held security talks in Damascus.
The peace process, dubbed the Terror-Free Turkey, now awaits the 'framework law,' expected to be submitted before parliament goes into its summer recess. There appears to be no consensus, however, on the bill's exact timing, scope and the conditions on the ground. While the process remains in the waiting room, the Interior Ministry took a concrete step, lifting thousands of search points and checkpoints in the terror-affected region. The pro-Kurdish DEM Party, through all its spokespeople, is asking 'what the law is waiting for.' But reading between the lines of AKP and DEM Party statements reveals disagreements at the draft stage.
The name of Beşir Atalay, a founding member of the ruling AKP and a former interior minister, has been removed from a university campus in Kırıkkale, causing controversy within the party.
Turkish authorities launched a new anti-drug operation on March 25, detaining high-profile figures from the worlds of sports, business, and entertainment. The raids marked the end of a brief lull in such operations following the appointment of the new interior and justice ministers in February.
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan reshuffled his Cabinet, appointing Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor Akın Gürlek as justice minister, replacing Yılmaz Tunç. Gürlek has long been a target of the main opposition, dating back to his tenure as head of Istanbul’s 14th Heavy Penal Court, and more recently since his appointment as chief public prosecutor in October 2024, amid a series of high-profile court cases. Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya was also replaced, with Erzurum Governor Mustafa Çiftçi named to the post. Gürlek’s appointment is widely viewed as a promotion
The cockpit voice recorder (CVR) from the aircraft that crashed near Haymana, Ankara, in late 2025 had been decoded, but it provides information that clashes with the prosecutor’s file and the Interior Ministry’s statement on the lethal crash.
Images of Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) leader Masoud Barzani accompanied by uniformed peshmerga fighters wearing red berets and carrying assault rifles weapons in Şırnak sparked outrage — particularly from MHP Chair Devlet Bahçeli — and drove the Interior Ministry to investigate itself.
Prosecutors have requested permission from the Interior Ministry to investigate Ankara Mayor Mansur Yavaş, widely seen as a potential presidential contender against President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, over alleged misconduct and dereliction of duty, Oct. 10.