Turkey

Ankara's ambiguous outcomes: Trump overwhelms Nato's best intentions

The NATO summit reaffirmed collective defence and support for Ukraine, but Donald Trump's remarks on Spain, Greenland and Iran exposed deep alliance tensions

Trump says he will lift Turkey sanctions, decide on selling F-35s

Trump said the US would lift sanctions on Turkey and consider an F-35 fighter jet sale, signalling a shift in defence ties with Ankara

Nato Summit 2026: Defence spending, Ukraine, Iran conflict dominate agenda

Trump's frequent criticism of Nato, along with announced troop withdrawals from Europe and a six-month review of the US military presence on the continent, has fuelled uncertainty within the alliance

Fifa WC 2026: Turkey stun US 3-2 with late goal as Americans eye knockouts

Kaan Ayhan scored on the final kick of the match, and Turkey beat the United States 3-2 Thursday night for its only win of the World Cup. Auston Trusty scored in the third minute and Sebastian Berhalter got a tying goal early in the second half for the Americans, who had already won Group D with victories over Paraguay and Australia. Coach Mauricio Pochettino's team will meet Bosnia-Herzegovina in the Round of 32 on Wednesday. Pochettino fielded nine new starters for this low-stakes game, but Christian Pulisic entered in the 58th minute. He hadn't played since the first half of the Americans' opener due to a calf injury. Arda Guler and Orkun Kokcu scored in the first half of a resilient performance by Turkey, which had already been eliminated. Turkey won in the eighth minute of stoppage time when Can Uzun got the ball in space on the back post and pushed it past sprawling goalkeeper Matt Turner to Ayhan, who slid to knock it home.

Erdogan wants Turkey to have more babies; few parents are listening

Demographers attribute the decline to factors common in countries around the world: urbanisation, changing lifestyles and the spread of higher education, especially among women

Turkiye passes bill restricting social media access for children under 15

Turkish lawmakers passed a bill late Wednesday that includes restricting access to social media platforms for children under 15, state media reported. The legislation is the latest in a global trend to protect young people from dangerous online activity. Its passage comes a week after a 14-year-old boy killed nine students and a teacher at a middle school in Kahramanmaras, southern Turkiye, in a gun attack. Police are investigating the online activity of the perpetrator, who also died, in a bid to uncover his motivation for the attack. The bill will force social media platforms to install age-verification systems, provide parental control tools and require companies to rapidly respond to content deemed harmful, the state-run Anadolu news agency said. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan must now accept the bill within 15 days for it to pass into law. He spoke in the wake of the Kahramanmaras killings of the need for to mitigate the online risks to children's safety and privacy.

Turkiye detains 9 over attack outside Israeli Consulate in Istanbul

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

US slams attack on Israeli consulate in Istanbul, commends Turkiye response

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

Turkish police kill gunman in shootout near Israeli consulate in Istanbul

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

Regional powers' huddle in Pakistan to de-escalate West Asia conflict

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

Tanker carrying Russian oil hit by drone in Black Sea near Turkey

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 air defences intercept third ballistic missile over Turkiye

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.

Earthquake of magnitude 5.5 jolts Turkiye, no casualties reported

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 seeks 'fair, equitable negotiations' with United States

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 seeks to broker talks between US-Iran to avert military escalation

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

Turkey in talks to join Saudi-Pakistan defence alliance, says report

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

Turkey's return to F-35 programme vital for Nato security, says Erdogan

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'

6 Islamic State militants, 3 police officers killed in clash in Turkiye

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.

Turkiye nabs over 100 IS suspects planning attacks on Christmas, New Year

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 .

Turkiye examines black boxes for crash that killed Libya's military chief

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