Analysis
Smart, independent reporting on Turkey's politics, economy and foreign affairs.
Who is back? Ümit Kocasakal. He won the election for president of the Istanbul Bar Association on Oct. 25, returning to the post he held from 2010 to 2016. And which slogan did he bring back with him? “We are the soldiers of Mustafa Kemal.” He and his supporters chanted it together after his victory.
On Oct. 24, journalists marched simultaneously in Istanbul, Ankara, Izmir, Bursa, Eskişehir, Antalya, Adana, Kocaeli, Diyarbakır and Van, answering a call from press unions and professional organizations including the Diplomatic Correspondents Association under the slogan “No to censorship, freedom for news.”
At Ankara Bar Association No. 2, President Gökhan Ağdemir withdrew his candidacy for reelection after boasting that his bar had helped 70 of its members become judges and prosecutors. At Istanbul Bar Association No. 2, the candidate backed by AKP and MHP groups lost the presidency by six votes.
Authorities have ordered an access ban on the X accounts of the left-wing TİP headquarters and its Istanbul branch, the party said on Oct. 14, following thousands of similar bans on the accounts of academics, journalists, websites and associations.
Foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows fell 35% year-over-year in the first eight months of 2026 to $6.8 billion from $10.5 billion recorded during the same period in 2025, according to data released by the International Investors Association (YASED).
The education minister described a wave of lethal violence in schools as a “sickness” and suggested social media is to blame.
Scores of journalists, activists, and politicians gathered outside the Constitutional Court Oct. 7 to protest censorship of social media accounts.
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.”
The global umbrella of social democratic parties, Socialist International, suspended the CHP under its court-appointed leadership and admitted Özgür Özel's Yeni Party as a full member.
After years of demonizing rhetoric against LGBTQ+ people, Turkish authorities launched a nationwide operation named 'My Family Is Safe,' detaining hundreds of people from civil society. The crackdown continued with arrests and access bans targeting dissidents, media outlets and civil society organizations' X accounts, widening to include broader opposition voices who spoke out against the operations. The main charge in the investigation was 'obscenity.'
Before me is the “LGBTQ+ Rights Monitoring Report” on the 2023 elections, prepared by University Queer Research and LGBT+ Solidarity Association (ÜniKuir) whose website was blocked as part of the “My Family Is Safe” operation.
Joel Lion, an ultra-Orthodox rabbi and close associate of Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar, presented his credentials in Ankara on Sept. 9 and left the same day after attending a US Independence Day reception.