Turkey

Erdoğan’s biggest political rival ahead of the 2023 presidential elections seems to be — poverty. The first decade of Erdoğan’s rule actually brought relative prosperity to Turks. Per capita GDP rose sharply from $3,688 in 2002 to $11,796 in 2012… Since 2013, however, reckless nepotism, increasing authoritarianism, corruption and economic …

A local Yazidi armed group linked to the Kurdistan Workers Party and affiliated with the government-incorporated Popular Mobilization Units has been targeted as part of stepped-up Turkish cross-border operations. Turkey has targeted members of a local Yazidi armed group linked to the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) in northern Iraq and …

Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is pressed by a collapsing national currency, falling domestic popularity, and regional competition. Erdogan’s fiscal policies have arguably worsened the domestic economic situation Opponents of Erdogan might defeat him in the next election, particularly if Turkey’s economic problems continue to linger and potentially worsen. Turkey’s …

Aysel Tugluk, who defended PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan in his trial decades ago, is now suffering from advanced dementia behind bars, despite widespread calls for her release. Aysel Tugluk, a slight brunette with high cheekbones, eagle eyes and long, dark hair, garnered much curiosity during the courtroom trial of Abdullah …

In cutting interest rates amid spiralling inflation, the Turkish government under President Erdogan has thrown economic orthodoxy out the window. The poor face getting poorer. Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s plan to turn around the Turkish economy has a new victim in Finance Minister Lutfi Elvan, who resigned on December 2. But …

Lebanon is witnessing one of the biggest waves of emigration in its history as the country faces its worst socio-economic conditions amid a worsening political crisis; Turkey, Armenia and Georgia have become new destinations. Western European countries, the United States, Australia and Gulf states have been Lebanese’s top migration destinations …

Erdogan’s Qatar visit failed to produce agreements that could help the ailing Turkish economy, but he wants to maintain Turkey’s partnership with Qatar, including military ties, while making efforts to reconcile with Gulf rivals. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has paid a visit to Qatar – a country he sees …

High-level diplomacy has intensified among competing Middle East regional powers, a flurry of bilateral talks that increasingly suggests what a “Plan B” would look like if, as seems likely, the U.S. and Iran fail to revive the deal that briefly constrained Tehran’s nuclear program. The pace of contacts and meetings …

The Sinjar Resistance Units is a member of the Popular Mobilization Units, making it officially part of the Iraqi security forces. Turkey killed a Yazidi commander in Iraq today. Marwan Badal, who commands the Sinjar Resistance Units (YBS), was killed in a Turkish airstrike in Sinjar in western Iraq. The …

Lawyers have accused Turkish authorities of unjustly detaining people for alleged Revolutionary Peoples’ Liberation Party-Front (DHKP-C) links. Turkish police conducted raids targeting a far-left armed group today. Police detained 25 individuals for alleged ties to the Revolutionary People’s Liberation Party-Front (DHKP-C) in Istanbul, Ankara and other parts of the country. …