Justice and Development Party

Kurds at a Crossroads as Middle East Shifts

Syrian Kurdish military leader Mazloum Abdi’s recent meeting with top Kurdish officials of northern Iraq points to the region’s shifting political landscape. Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) commander...

President Erdogan’s Decapitation of the Turkish Opposition

The US and NATO need to stand up for what remains of Turkey’s democracy.

PKK announcement of withdrawal from Turkey has ramifications for Iraq, Syria

On October 26, the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) said it was withdrawing its fighters from Turkey. The withdrawal is part of a peace process that has seen the group say it will disarm...

When Erdoğan Shifted Focus to the Kurds in Syria

2015 marked a change in the Syria policy of Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. He began to walk back his initial goal of toppling the Asad regime and turned towards Syria’s surging Kurdish forces....

Turkey’s Push for Regime Change in Syria: The Jihadi Highway

Syria’s civil war broke out in March 2011, in reaction to the brutal crackdown by the regime of Bashar al-Asad of popular protests that were part of the wider Arab Spring. In supporting the Syrian...

Turkey’s Neo-Ottoman Moment

Turkey’s Syria policy didn’t materialize in a vacuum. Rather, it was a reaction to the Arab uprisings that began in January 2011, known as the Arab Spring, which Turkish policymakers interpreted as...

Erdoğan’s Long Game in Syria

When Bashar al-Asad’s regime abruptly collapsed in December 2024, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan saw more than just a regional upheaval. He saw a long-awaited opportunity.  With Iran’s...

Turkey’s Kurds and the Making of Erdoğan’s Autocracy

Turkey’s Kurdish political movement is unexpectedly emerging as a crucial partner in President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s ongoing drive to consolidate power and entrench autocratic rule. On...

Turkish Police Carry Out Mass Arrests as Istanbul Pride Parade Is Shut Down

Latest Developments Turkish Police Arrest Pride Marchers: At least 50 people were arrested in Turkey for attempting to take part in an LGBTQ+ Pride parade on June 29. Footage of the event shows police...

10 Things to Know About the Muslim Brotherhood

The Muslim Brotherhood is a transnational Islamist movement dedicated to the remaking of society and government according to the dictates of Islamic law, or sharia. Founded in 1928 by Hassan al-Banna,...

The Struggle for Syria

On May 14, President Donald Trump stood smiling with Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohamed bin Salman and Syria’s self-declared leader, Ahmed al-Shara’a, on the sidelines of the President’s visit...

‘Resolved to Dissolve’: Kurdish PKK to Disarm and Disband in Apparent Peace Effort With Turkey

Kurdish Armed Group to Disband: The Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) announced its decision to disband on May 12, in a reported step toward peace following more than four decades of...

A Turkey With No Elections?

On March 19, Turkish authorities arrested Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu—President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s most serious political challenger. Imamoglu has served as mayor since 2019 and has defeated...

Erdoğan Sets His Sights on Israel

If Trump wants to prevent another regional conflict, calling Turkey’s president a “friend” won’t cut it.

Turkey’s Ties to Al-Qaeda Entities in Yemen Threaten Regional Security

“Turkey is a country that loves us, and we love it,” declared Abu Omar al-Nahdi, a former emir in al-Qaeda’s Yemen branch and now the leader of the newly formed Change and Liberation Movement in...

A bad week for the Muslim Brotherhood

Protests against Hamas and Turkey's president are roiling the Middle East.

Hamas and Turkey: Partners in Terror

‘Walk Across the Street’: Turkish Opposition Calls for Nationwide Boycotts of Pro-Erdogan Companies and Media

CHP Publishes List of Companies to Boycott: The leader of Turkey’s opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) has called for a nationwide boycott of Turkish companies backing...

Turkey’s Kurdish peace talks: A genuine effort or Erdoğan’s power play?

Erdoğan is arguably negotiating with the Kurds mainly as a means of securing Kurdish parliamentarians’ votes to extend his rule as president

Turkey Arrests Presidential Candidate Ekrem Imamoglu

It was, according to Turkey’s main opposition Republican People’s Party, a “coup against our next president.” In the early hours of March 19, Turkish police arrested Ekrem Imamoglu, the mayor of...