Analysis
Smart, independent reporting on Turkey's politics, economy and foreign affairs.
Izmir Metropolitan Mayor Cemil Tugay’s decision to join the AKP caused a major stir, bitter disappointment, and protests. After all, Izmir has long been regarded as a stronghold of left-wing politics. In fact, the city can be analyzed as “a city with center-right leanings that consistently votes for left-wing social democrats because of its opposition to the AKP.”
Can Atalay, stripped of his parliamentary seat and held in prison since 2022, began a hunger strike as parliament reconvened on Oct. 1, while the main opposition Yeni Party walked out when President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan took the floor during the opening speech.
Police forcibly intervened on Aug. 13 against striking miners outside the Energy Ministry in Ankara, detaining union leaders and multiple workers on the fourth day of their protest over unpaid wages.
Teachers have begun hunger strikes in a central Ankara park after encountering violent treatment from the police during protests outside the Education Ministry.
Turkey is watching the protests in Iran with growing concern, warning that U.S. President Donald Trump’s threat of intervention could trigger dangerous regional consequences as Ankara pushes de-escalation through diplomacy with Gulf countries.
Authorities arrested 16 young leftists who were protesting the deaths of child laborers, many linked to MESEM, Vocational Training Centers run by the Education Ministry.
Democrat Party (DP) Izmir Deputy Haydar Altıntaş has announced the party's withdrawal from the National Solidarity, Brotherhood, and Democracy Commission, citing objections to the delegation’s visit to İmralı where PKK leader Abdullah Öcalan has been jailed since 1999.
Talent manager Ayşe Barım, on trial for allegedly attempting to overthrow the government in connection with the 2013 Gezi Park protests, was briefly granted conditional release under judicial supervision—until an upper court overturned the ruling and issued a new arrest warrant just as she was about to undergo a medical procedure.
CHP Chair Özgür Özel vowed to continue resisting court rulings against his party, accusing the government of trying to criminalize peaceful protest.
Turkey’s Constitutional Court has ruled that former HDP MP Hüda Kaya was unlawfully arrested and that her rights were violated after she was denied access to her file following her detention over the 2014 Kobani protests.
Parliament passed a legislative package on July 19 that enables mining in olive groves, triggering protests from opposition parties, locals, and environmental groups. The bill, which the AKP says is to address Turkey’s energy needs, passed with 255 votes in favor and 199 against.
Four staff members of the satirical magazine Leman were arrested after a cartoon accused of insulting religious values triggered violent protests in Istanbul and drew sharp reactions from across the political spectrum.