Turkey

Turkish authorities have detained nine people as part of an investigation into an attack on police outside a building housing the Israeli Consulate in Istanbul that left one assailant dead, Turkiye's state-run news agency reported Wednesday. Two other assailants were wounded and captured during Tuesday's shootout in the city's financial and business district, while two police officers sustained slight injuries, officials said. Israel had withdrawn its diplomats from Turkiye over security concerns and deteriorating relations with Ankara shortly after the start of the war in Gaza, and officials said the consulate was closed at the time of the attack. Interior Minister Mustafa Ciftci said one of the assailants had links to a group that he said "exploits religion," without naming the organisation. The Islamic State group has carried out deadly attacks in Turkiye in the past. Anadolu Agency reported that security forces detained nine suspects in operations conducted in Istanbul as well

Gunfire erupted near the Israeli Consulate in the Besiktas district of Istanbul on Tuesday, prompting an immediate security intervention

The diplomatic mission is located in Levent, one of Istanbul's main financial districts, and surrounded by office towers, shopping malls and heavy foot traffic

Foreign Ministers of Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Turkiye and Pakistan held consultations on the West Asia conflict in Islamabad on Sunday to find a way to de-escalate the ongoing war that has unsettled the region and caused severe global economic disruptions. The foreign ministers discussed the evolving regional situation and exchanged views on security issues while exploring options for broader peace in the region, an official said. The talks were held amidst a delay in the direct talks between the US and Iran. No statement was issued after the meeting. Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty and Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan arrived in Islamabad on Saturday, while their Saudi counterpart, Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud, reached here on Sunday at the invitation of Pakistan Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar. The two-day quadrilateral summit is Pakistan's attempt to broker peace in West Asia. After the meeting, the Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farh

The attack, just outside Turkish territorial waters, likely aimed to disable the engine room in the Sierra Leone-flagged vessel that was carrying Russian oil

NATO defences on Friday intercepted a ballistic missile fired from Iran over Turkiye, the Defense Ministry said. It marked the third such incident since the start of the Iran war. Turkiyes Defence Ministry said the missile was destroyed by NATO air defences deployed in the eastern Mediterranean. Residents in the southern city of Adana reported hearing a loud explosion and sirens sounding at Incirlik Air Base, which is used by US forces, in the early hours of Friday. No casualties were reported. This week, NATO deployed an additional Patriot air defense system in the southeastern province of Malatya, where the Kurecik radar station is based. The Defence Ministry stressed Thursday that Incirlik is a Turkish base and that the foreign troop presence doesn't alter the base's status in an apparent response to warnings from Tehran to regional countries not to host US military bases.

A moderately strong earthquake struck central Turkiye on Friday, Turkiye's emergency response said. The tremor sent some residents rushing into the streets but no damage has been reported. The magnitude 5.5 quake was centred in the town of Niksar in Tokat province, at a depth of 6.4 kilometers (4 miles), according to the Disaster and Emergency Management agency, AFAD. It occurred at 3:35 am and was felt in several provinces, AFAD said, adding that "no adverse developments" were reported. Still, many residents were seen waiting in cars or in the streets despite the cold, afraid to return to homes, Haberturk news channel reported. Turkiye sits on top of major fault lines and earthquakes are frequent. In 2023, a magnitude 7.8 earthquake killed more than 53,000 people in Turkiye and destroyed or damaged hundreds of thousands of buildings in 11 southern and southeastern provinces. Another 6,000 people were killed in the northern parts of neighbouring Syria.

Iran's president on Tuesday said he has instructed the country's foreign minister to "pursue fair and equitable negotiations" with the United States. The comments from reformist President Masoud Pezeshkian represent the first clear signal from Iran that it may take part in negotiations being organized by Turkey. Pezeshkian made the comments on X. "I have instructed my Minister of Foreign Affairs, provided that a suitable environment exists - one free from threats and unreasonable expectations - to pursue fair and equitable negotiations, guided by the principles of dignity, prudence, and expediency," he said. The U.S. has yet to acknowledge the talks will take place.

Turkey is attempting to bring US and Iranian officials to the negotiating table in hopes of easing the threat of US military action against Iran. Neither the US nor Iran has confirmed whether they plan to take part in any negotiations. Two Turkish officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media, said Turkey is trying to organize a meeting between US special envoy Steve Witkoff and Iranian leaders. The meeting could take place as soon as the end of the week, one of the officials said. The US military has moved the USS Abraham Lincoln and several guided-missile destroyers into the Middle East, but it remains unclear whether US President Donald Trump would decide to use force against the Iranian government, as he has suggested he might do in retribution for their devastating crackdown on last month's protests and as he presses for a deal on Iran's nuclear program. "We have talks going on with Iran, we'll see how it all works out

The trilateral defense talks come in the wake of a cease-fire between Pakistan and India that ended a four-day military clash between the nuclear-armed neighbors in May

Erdogan said he made his pitch personally to Trump during their White House meeting in September, calling the decision to expel Turkey from the F-35 programme 'unjust'

Militants of the Islamic State group opened fire on police and wounded seven officers during a raid on the group in northwest Turkiye on Monday, the country's state-run media reported. The clash broke out in Yalova province, south of Istanbul, as police stormed a house where the militants were hiding, Anadolu Agency said. Special forces from neighboring Bursa province were dispatched to reinforce the operation. Anadolu said none of the wounded officers were in serious condition. Last week, police launched scores of simultaneous raids, detaining 115 militants of the extremist group who were allegedly planning attacks targeting Christmas and New Year's celebrations. Officials said the group had called for action, particularly against non-Muslims, during the celebrations. IS has carried out a series of deadly attacks in Turkiye in recent years, including a shooting at an Istanbul nightclub during New Year celebrations on January 1, 2017, which killed 39 people.

Istanbul police launched scores of simultaneous raids on Thursday, detaining over a hundred suspected members of the militant Islamic State group who were allegedly planning attacks against Christmas and New Year's celebrations, authorities said. A statement from the Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor's Office said police were tipped off that the extremist group had called for action -- particularly against non-Muslims -- during the celebrations. The office had issued warrants for 137 suspects, of whom 115 were detained. Officers also seized many firearms, cartridges and documents during the raids. It said 124 locations were raided. The arrests come days after the Trump administration launched widespread military strikes in neighbouring Syria to "eliminate" Islamic State fighters and weapons' sites in retaliation for an ambush blamed on the group that killed two US troops and an American civilian interpreter. Syrian security forces have also launched operations against IS in recent .

Experts have started analysing the black boxes recovered from a jet crash in Turkiye that killed eight people, including western Libya's military chief, the Turkish defence ministry said on Thursday. The probe was being done in coordination with Libyan officials. The private jet with Gen. Muhammad Ali Ahmad al-Haddad, four other military officers and three crew members crashed on Tuesday after taking off from Ankara, Turkiye's capital, killing everyone on board. Libyan officials said the cause of the crash was a technical malfunction on the plane. Al-Haddad was the top military commander in western Libya and played a crucial role in the ongoing, UN-brokered efforts to unify Libya's military, which has split, much like Libya's institutions. The high-level Libyan delegation was on its way back to Tripoli, Libya's capital, after holding defence talks in Ankara aimed at boosting military cooperation between the two countries. The wreckage was scattered across an area covering 3 square

Search and recovery teams on Wednesday intensified their operations at the site of a plane crash that killed Libya's military chief and other high-level officers, working to secure the area and locate the aircraft's flight recorders after a night of heavy rain and fog, Turkiye's state-run news agency said. The private jet carrying Gen. Muhammad Ali Ahmad al-Haddad, four other officers and three crew members crashed in Turkiye on Tuesday after taking off from the capital, Ankara, killing everyone on board. Libyan officials said the cause of the crash was a technical malfunction on the plane. The Libyan delegation was on its way back to Tripoli after holding high-level defence talks in Ankara aimed at boosting military cooperation between the two countries. Libyan Prime Minister Abdul-Hamid Dbeibah confirmed the deaths, describing the incident on Facebook as a tragic accident and a great loss for Libya. Al-Hadad was the top military commander in western Libya and played a crucial rol

Clashes erupted between Syrian security forces and Kurdish fighters on Monday as top Turkish officials visited Damascus ahead of a deadline to implement a deal between the government and Kurdish-led forces in the country's northeast. Syria's state-run SANA news agency reported that two civilians were killed and 15 were wounded by shelling, and that dozens of families fled two neighbourhoods of the northern Syrian city of Aleppo, which has seen previous outbreaks of violence. The Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, or SDF, said 17 people were wounded and a woman was killed. The conflicting casualty reports could not immediately be reconciled. Late on Monday evening, the Syrian defence ministry announced an order to halt fire. It was not immediately clear how the new clashes in Aleppo's Sheikh Maqsoud and Achrafieh neighbourhoods started. Syria's Civil Defence agency said two of its emergency responders were wounded after fighters with the Kurdish-led SDF opened fire on their ...

IndiGo has already been allowed to operate five narrow body planes leased from Turkey till March 2026 and no further extension will be given, according to aviation regulator DGCA. The watchdog on Monday provided a clarification about the lease duration for aircraft taken by IndiGo from Turkey amid speculations that the airline has been given more time to use such leased planes. "IndiGo has been permitted to operate aircraft on wet lease from Turkey with a last extension valid till March 2026 with a sunset clause that no further extension will be given. "This is based on the undertaking submitted by Indigo airlines in the instant case wherein they have sought last time extension, since their long range aircraft (A321-XLR) are to be delivered by February 2026," a senior DGCA official said. The lease of five Boeing 737 planes taken from Turkey's Corendon Airlines ends on March 31, 2026, as per the regulator. Currently, IndiGo operates 15 foreign aircraft on wet/damp lease basis, ...

Two tankers were struck and caught fire in the Black Sea, Turkish authorities reported, prompting rescue operations. Crew members on board both vessels were reported to be safe. The OpenSanctions database, which tracks people or organisations involved in sanctions evasion, described the vessels as shadow fleet or vessels used to evade sanctions imposed on Russia following its 2022 invasion of Russia. Turkey's Directorate General of Maritime Affairs said the first tanker, the Gambian-flagged Kairos, caught fire in the Black Sea, approximately 45 km off the coast of Turkey's Kocaeli province. It blamed on the fire on an external impact, without providing details. The Kairos was sailing empty toward Russia's Novorossiysk port, it said. Within the hour, the maritime authority reported that a second tanker, Virat, was struck while sailing in the Black Sea about 35 nautical miles off the Turkish coast. It did not provide further details. Rescue teams were dispatched to the scene to pro

Although a formal sign-off is still needed, Flasberth said there was no opposition within a group of countries needed to back the decision

All 20 personnel on board a military cargo plane that crashed in Georgia were killed, Turkiye's defence minister announced on Wednesday. The C-130 plane had taken off from Ganja, Azerbaijan and was on its way back to Turkiye when it crashed on Tuesday in Georgia's Sighnaghi municipality, close to the Azerbaijani border. The cause of the crash is being investigated. A Turkish accident investigation team reached the crash site early on Wednesday and was inspecting the wreckage of the plane, in coordination with the Georgian authorities, the National Defence Ministry said. The wreckage was spread across a plain that includes farmland and is surrounded by hills, Turkish private broadcaster NTV reported from the site. Debris from the aircraft was scattered across multiple locations, the report said. Our heroic comrades-in-arms were martyred on November 11, 2025, when our C-130 military cargo plane, which had taken off from Azerbaijan en route to our country, crashed near the ...