Politics
AK Party ‘revolution’ in Turkish politics set to mark 24 years
The Justice and Development Party (AK Party) will celebrate its 24th anniversary on Thursday. Evolved from a modest gathering of the “Movement of the Virtuous,” the party boasts a streak of successive election victories in two decades. It is credited with transforming Türkiye in the first two decades of the 2000s, from education and health care to the arts, democracy, human rights, defense industry and energy.
Nowadays, the party, under the leadership of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, is working toward achieving the ambitious Century of Türkiye vision, a new set of reforms aimed at enhancing Türkiye’s standing in the world and improving the lives of the Turkish nation in all fields.
Erdoğan will attend the main celebratory event at the party’s headquarters in Ankara, which will coincide with a gathering of the party’s chairs for 81 provincial offices, and make a speech. The party plans to introduce a new roadmap for the future and discuss public outreach that was recently expanded with a new campaign to explain the terror-free Türkiye initiative to the population. It will also discuss the achievements in the past 24 years.
In his speech, Erdoğan is expected to unveil new reforms set to be introduced in 2026 and issue new messages regarding the terror-free Türkiye initiative.
During the celebrations, more than four mayors from other parties are expected to switch sides to the AK Party. Some media outlets reported that two lawmakers who recently parted ways with the Future Party (GP) may join the AK Party during the event, along with several surprise names from the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP).
Milestones
The AK Party’s governance has brought about significant changes for the better in Türkiye, following years of coalition governments and economic uncertainties.
Garnering votes of people who suffered during the dark period that led to the so-called “postmodern” coup of 1997, the party reinstated its rights. It allowed headscarves for university students in a bid for equality for all. The ban on headscarves for middle school students was also lifted in 2014. This equality in education later expanded into the public sector, and civil servants were allowed to wear a headscarf.
Universities also flourished under AK Party governments and their numbers reached 209 with the government’s promise to have at least one university in each of the 81 provinces. Another revolutionary move was the offer of free textbooks to primary and middle school students for the first time. The AK Party governments also significantly altered the education system by introducing a 12-year mandatory education system instead of the previous eight years.
Another revolution came in the form of natural gas. The AK Party governments successfully led efforts for energy independence and security, and the Fatih drillship made a major natural gas find off the shores of the northwestern province of Sakarya, paving the way for meeting the energy needs of 3 million households. This was complemented by the discovery of 75 billion cubic meters of natural gas in another reserve, also in the Black Sea. Another significant step toward energy independence was the discovery of oil in Gabar Mountain in the southeast, leading to daily production exceeding 78,000 barrels of oil.
In health care, AK Party governments introduced Türkiye to the concept of the “city hospital.” These massive complexes, which merge specialized hospitals and offer premium services free of charge, were first opened in 2017 in the central city of Yozgat and have since spread to other cities.
Under the AK Party rule, Türkiye ensured that the nation’s will governed the country and switched to an executive presidency system shortly after implementing a new presidential system, where the public elects the president. Also in this new era, the age limit for election into Parliament was lowered to 18.
The past 24 years have also witnessed significant developments elsewhere, including the introduction of the first mass-produced locally made vehicle, Togg, the first locally made satellite, IMECE and the launch of the first Turkish astronaut into space. In the defense industry, dependence on other countries reduced from 80% to 20% and Türkiye introduced
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has vowed that anyone found responsible for a deadly mine collapse in the western province of Manisa will be held accountable, as an investigation continues following the deaths of five miners.
Speaking Saturday at Teknofest Southeast in Şanlıurfa, Erdoğan said authorities were pursuing both administrative and criminal investigations into Thursday’s collapse in the Soma district, where five miners were killed and two others were rescued with injuries.
The Energy and Natural Resources Ministry has launched an administrative investigation, while the Soma Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office has opened a judicial inquiry. Nine people, including officials from the company operating the mine, have been taken into custody.
“The investigation is continuing in multiple directions. Anyone found to have been negligent or guilty will certainly be held accountable. We will also follow the process closely,” Erdoğan said.
He offered condolences to the families and colleagues of the five miners who lost their lives and wished a speedy recovery to the two injured workers, who remain under medical treatment.
Erdoğan made the remarks during the opening of Teknofest Southeast at Şanlıurfa GAP Airport, where thousands of visitors gathered to attend the country’s flagship aviation, aerospace and technology festival.
The president praised young participants for their technological achievements, saying their projects demonstrated the progress Türkiye has made in science and innovation.
“Once again, we are proudly witnessing the level Türkiye has reached in technology and the high-quality projects produced by the Teknofest generation,” he said, congratulating young people who displayed their inventions and turned their ideas into reality at the festival.
The atmosphere at the airport, along with the determination, enthusiasm and ambition of the participants, showed that Türkiye’s future was in capable hands, Erdoğan said.
He added that the country’s long-term development vision, known as the “Century of Türkiye,” would carry the imprint of a generation increasingly involved in technological innovation.
“These young people are a source of pride for our nation and among the country’s most valuable assets,” he said, praising their knowledge, confidence and ambition.
Erdoğan also thanked the Industry and Technology Ministry, the Turkish Technology Team Foundation and other organizations involved in organizing the festival, describing Teknofest as the world’s largest aviation, aerospace and technology event.
He said he had personally recommended Şanlıurfa as the host city, arguing that its historical and cultural heritage made it an appropriate setting for an event bringing together technological innovation and young talent.
“Once again, we are experiencing the excitement of Teknofest, an event shaped from beginning to end by young people, and this time we are doing so in Şanlıurfa,” he said.
Erdoğan highlighted the city’s ancient history, describing it as a center of religious heritage, science and civilization. Şanlıurfa is home to Göbeklitepe, an archaeological site widely recognized for its significance in understanding early human history.
He also recalled the contributions of scholars associated with the region, including Al-Battani, Sinan ibn Thabit, Ibn Wasif of Harran and Yunus al-Harrani, who made contributions to fields including mathematics, astronomy, medicine and philosophy.
The president said hosting Teknofest in Şanlıurfa was intended to connect the country’s historical legacy with the ambitions of its younger generation and the technologies of the future.
He added that organizers wanted young Turks to draw inspiration from their cultural roots while introducing international participants to the country’s history and heritage.
Teknofest began in 2018 with applications from 4,333 teams, Erdoğan said, noting that participation had increased significantly over the years.
This year’s Southeast edition attracted more than 730,000 teams and over 1.6 million competitors from all 81 Turkish provinces and 97 countries, according to the president.
Visitor numbers had also approached 1 million, he added, highlighting the growing public interest in the festival.
Türkiye’s Underwater Defense Command (SAS) is training its personnel to respond to threats ranging from drifting sea mines and unexploded ordnance to improvised explosive devices and unmanned maritime systems, as the naval unit maintains operations aimed at securing the country’s waters.
The unit, part of the Turkish Naval Forces Command, carries out explosive ordnance disposal, underwater operations and other specialized missions at sea and on land. Its personnel have also taken part in counterterrorism operations when assigned, according to SAS commander Navy Capt. Dr. D. Ilhan Sayıcı.
“These missions require many years of training and experience,” Sayıcı said. “Procedures must be followed completely during a mission because there is no margin for error. For us, the first mistake is the last.”
Established in 1964, the command has participated in operations ranging from the 1974 Cyprus Peace Operation to more recent counterterrorism missions, Sayıcı noted.
One of its main areas of expertise is neutralizing explosive threats, including naval mines, unexploded ordnance, improvised explosive devices and suspicious underwater objects.
SAS teams have also been tasked with responding to drifting mines and other potential threats in the Black Sea, where mines have posed risks to maritime traffic.
He said the unit’s objective is to protect maritime transportation, respond rapidly to potential threats and safeguard Türkiye’s maritime interests.
Becoming a SAS commando requires about a year of intensive training, with officers and noncommissioned officers joining on a voluntary basis.
Candidates are evaluated not only on physical fitness but also on psychological resilience, technical knowledge, leadership and their ability to make decisions under intense pressure, Sayıcı said.
The unit regularly conducts shooting, diving, demolition, helicopter and field exercises to maintain operational readiness.
A SAS officer identified as Lt. B. described one of the unit’s procedures, known as the Tactical Claw Operation, which is designed to neutralize drifting naval mines and unmanned aerial or maritime vehicles.
Under the procedure, SAS personnel are transported to the area by helicopter before entering the water and placing explosives on the target. They then withdraw to a safe area by boat or helicopter before remotely detonating the device, the officer said.
SAS teams have intervened against more than 300 suspicious objects, including mines and unmanned aerial and maritime vehicles, according to the unit.
Its personnel have also served in counterterrorism operations inside Türkiye and across the border, including operations Euphrates Shield, Olive Branch, Peace Spring and the Claw series, Lt. B. said.
The unit has also carried out missions in Libya, Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Bosnia-Herzegovina and Albania.
During a recent training exercise, SAS commandos practiced clearing a booby-trapped building, rescuing a hostage and neutralizing an improvised explosive device. Another explosive device detected in the field was targeted using sniper and rocket fire.
Another SAS officer, identified as Lt. S., said fewer than 30% of candidates have completed the approximately yearlong training course in previous years.
The officer said personnel undergo regular physical conditioning on land and at sea alongside specialized operational training.
“The physical and mental endurance required by our work can only be developed through continuous and disciplined training,” he emphasized, adding that exercises also focus on patience, composure, attention and decision-making.
Lt. B. said teamwork remains central to the unit’s approach, particularly during missions involving explosives.
“There is no room for fear, hesitation or mistakes in our understanding of duty,” he said. “We remind ourselves that we do not have the luxury of making a mistake.”
U.S. President Donald Trump voiced strong support for Türkiye and President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on Friday when asked about delays in lifting CAATSA sanctions that led to Ankara’s removal from the F-35 fighter jet program.
Noting that he loves Türkiye, Trump said he talks to President Erdoğan all the time.
“He is a friend of mine, as you know. And I’ll always make him happy,” Trump told reporters as he left the White House for Alabama, where he was due to attend a Republican Party campaign event.
Trump had announced during the NATO leaders’ summit in Ankara in July that sanctions on Türkiye would be lifted, saying Washington did not want to impose sanctions on its friends.
The U.S. imposed sanctions under the Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA) in 2020 after Türkiye purchased the Russian-made S-400 air defense system.
Ankara turned to the S-400 after its efforts to purchase the U.S.-made Patriot air defense system failed to produce a deal. Türkiye was subsequently removed from the F-35 fighter jet program.
Türkiye will open a Turkish school with capacity for about 1,000 students in the Syrian capital Damascus on Oct. 4 as Ankara and Damascus expand cooperation, the Turkish Education Ministry said.
The Damascus International Recep Tayyip Erdoğan Turkish School, named after Türkiye’s president, will open in the Artuz area of the Syrian capital and will begin providing education during the 2026-2027 academic year.
The school will operate under Türkiye’s Education Ministry and include kindergarten, primary, middle and high school levels, the ministry said in a statement on Friday.
The ministry said the school was established as part of growing education cooperation and coordination between Türkiye and Syria, including efforts aimed at expanding access to education for Syrian children and young people.
The facility has 36 classrooms and will accommodate about 1,000 students.
A delegation from the Turkish Education Ministry is expected to attend the opening ceremony and the school’s first class.
Ankara said the project was also intended to support children from families returning to Syria and help them adapt to education following their return.
The ministry described the school as part of broader efforts to strengthen educational links between the two countries, which share longstanding historical, cultural and social ties.
Türkiye has expanded its education-related activities in Syria as Ankara and Damascus have sought closer cooperation in several areas.
Turkish education officials have held a series of meetings and visits in Syria in recent months. Türkiye’s education office in Damascus said officials inspected the new school’s campus in September ahead of its planned opening.
The Education Ministry said it expects the school to provide students in Syria with access to Türkiye’s educational system while contributing to closer ties between the two countries.
The opening comes as Türkiye and Syria increase coordination on education following years of conflict that severely disrupted Syria’s education system and displaced millions of people.
Turkish officials have said supporting education and facilitating the adaptation of returning families are among the objectives of Ankara’s cooperation with Syrian authorities.
On Aug. 6, officials from Türkiye’s Council of Higher Education (YÖK) and Syria’s Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research also signed a memorandum of understanding to advance educational cooperation between the two countries.
Under the memorandum, the two parties will continue work on the legal framework, governance structure, academic organization, student admission procedures, quality assurance mechanisms and administrative regulations for the planned Syria-Türkiye University in Damascus.
Damaged vessels from the Global Sumud Flotilla are being repaired in Türkiye’s Antalya after an Israeli attack in international waters, with volunteers working to prepare the ships for another voyage toward Gaza.
Some of the vessels were left with damaged engines, broken masts and torn sails after the attack. They were later brought to Antalya, where local and international volunteers are carrying out repairs at a shipyard.
Two vessels have already been repaired and sent to Italy as part of preparations for another Gaza-bound mission, said Sümeyra Akdeniz Ordu, a board member of the Global Sumud Flotilla.
“We are trying to recover the ships drifting at sea one by one. We are carrying out a rescue mission,” Ordu told Anadolu Agency (AA). “We are repairing these ships so they can sail to Gaza again.”
Fourteen flotilla vessels are currently in Antalya, Ordu said, adding that volunteers from different countries were helping coordinate and repair the ships.
She said each vessel had a special significance for the activists and that they were treating the ships “like their own children” as they worked to restore them.
The damage was extensive, Ordu said, describing broken masts, damaged engines and cut hoses. She also said the sails had been torn with knives.
“The mast was broken, surface cleaner and coffee had been poured into the engines, and the hoses on each ship had been cut one by one,” she said. “They caused this damage by ramming them with larger ships.”
The repairs have been difficult because of the extent of the damage, but volunteers have continued working, Ordu said.
Türkiye has provided a safe port for the repair effort, she added.
Ordu said the activists remained determined to continue their efforts despite the damage to the vessels.
“If the enemy does not give up, we cannot give up,” she said. “We are trying to be a voice here for our Palestinian friends.”
She said the damage to the vessels showed what she described as the violence and hostility directed at the flotilla.
“We, too, insist on continuing every form of resistance,” Ordu said.
Türkiye condemned a drone attack on a power distribution station in the Saudi city of Medina that supplies electricity to the Prophet’s Mosque, reiterating its support for Saudi Arabia amid renewed regional tensions.
Ömer Çelik, spokesperson for Türkiye’s ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party), condemned the attack on Friday, saying targeting infrastructure serving the Prophet’s Mosque was unacceptable.
“Attacks targeting our sacred values are illegitimate acts directed against all Muslims,” Çelik said in a social media post, adding that Türkiye strongly supported Saudi Arabia’s security and stability.
The targeted facility supplies electricity to the Prophet’s Mosque, Islam’s second-holiest site. The attack put one transformer out of service but did not affect the electricity network.
Türkiye’s Foreign Ministry also strongly condemned the attack, saying strikes targeting civilian infrastructure and threatening Saudi Arabia’s sovereignty and security should “cease immediately and unconditionally.”
The ministry reiterated Türkiye’s support for Saudi Arabia and called on parties to avoid steps that could further escalate tensions in the region.
“We reaffirm our strong support for Saudi Arabia and emphasize the need to avoid any steps that would further escalate tensions in the region,” the statement said.
Presidential Communications Director Burhanettin Duran on Friday separately condemned the strike and said Türkiye would continue to stand by Saudi Arabia.
The Saudi-led coalition said an investigation and examination of drone wreckage indicated Houthi involvement in the Sept. 29 attack.
Coalition spokesperson Maj. Gen. Turki Al Maliki said the targeted facility supplies electricity to the Prophet’s Mosque, one of Islam’s holiest sites.
Saudi Arabia said two weeks ago it had intercepted and destroyed a Houthi drone south of Mecca before it entered restricted airspace over the Muslim holy city. The coalition described that incident as the second Houthi attempt to target Mecca since 2017.
Earlier on Thursday, the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and several Arab countries, including the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Jordan, Kuwait and Bahrain, also condemned the attack on Medina.
The OIC described the targeting of vital infrastructure and facilities as “a dangerous escalation and a blatant violation of the sanctity of holy sites,” as well as international and humanitarian laws and norms.
-
Politics3 days agoTurkish defense chief attends major joint military drills in Azerbaijan
-
Economy2 days agoTürkiye moves to finalize capital markets law changes after fund turmoil
-
Politics2 days agoErdoğan calls for ‘grand consensus’ amid terror-free Türkiye success
-
Economy3 days agoŞimşek tells investors Türkiye has avoided systemic risk in fund turmoil
-
Economy3 days agoUS tells European allies to release diesel stocks ‘immediately’
-
Economy3 days ago9 video game companies probed by EU over virtual currencies
-
Politics3 days agoIzmir mayor meets Erdoğan amid rumors of AK Party switch
-
Economy3 days agoRogue OpenAI agents reportedly covered up their tracks