Politics
Al-Aqsa preacher hails Türkiye’s efforts for Muslim unity
The head of the Higher Islamic Council and preacher of Al-Aqsa Mosque, Ikrima Sabri, on Thursday praised Türkiye’s efforts to strengthen ties among Muslim nations and commended President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan for promoting greater unity across the Islamic world.
“Growing coordination and cooperation among countries in the Islamic world represented a positive development,” Sabri said in a statement.
He said he was pleased with the visits and diplomatic exchanges hosted by Türkiye within the framework of strengthening Islamic rapprochement.
Sabri expressed hope that the efforts “would eventually lead to the formation of an Islamic union similar to existing international and regional blocs.”
“The Islamic nation today is closer than ever to the option of unity and harmony,” he said.
He praised Erdoğan’s role in seeking to deepen relations among Muslim countries and helping them move toward greater independence and prosperity.
Sabri also welcomed the continued exchange of official visits among leaders of Muslim countries, stressing that the issue of Al-Aqsa Mosque should remain central to those meetings and initiatives because it represents “the compass of the Islamic nation and its central cause.”
He specifically praised the current visit of Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune to Türkiye, saying Algeria and Türkiye are key pillars in supporting the Palestinian cause.
Sabri also welcomed Türkiye’s growing ties with several Muslim countries, including Malaysia, Saudi Arabia and Egypt, expressing hope that the efforts would contribute to stability and prosperity across the Islamic world.
Earlier Thursday, Erdoğan welcomed Tebboune with a ceremony at the presidential complex in Ankara.
The two leaders held talks and co-chaired a meeting of the High-Level Strategic Cooperation Council between the two countries, followed by the signing of agreements and a news conference.
Relations between Türkiye and Algeria have expanded rapidly in recent years across multiple sectors, driven by a friendship and cooperation agreement signed in 2006 and reinforced since Tebboune took office in December 2019.
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said Thursday that Türkiye is determined to expand strategic cooperation with Algeria across key sectors including regional security, energy, mining, transportation and agriculture, while warning that Israel’s attacks and regional escalation continue to disrupt global energy markets.
Speaking alongside Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune during a joint news conference in Ankara, Erdoğan said the two countries are strengthening long-term cooperation in energy supply security and advancing their strategic partnership.
Erdoğan recalled that the two leaders last met in Algeria on Nov. 21, 2023, where they elevated bilateral coordination mechanisms and officially launched the Türkiye-Algeria Strategic Cooperation Council.
“We chaired the first meeting of our Strategic Cooperation Council together and made decisions that will further advance our brotherhood,” Erdoğan said.
The Turkish president emphasized that relations between Ankara and Algiers are rooted in “mutual respect and affection stemming from a shared history,” adding that the spirit of solidarity also shapes the two countries’ positions on major international issues.
Describing Algeria as one of Türkiye’s largest trade partners in Africa, Erdoğan said cooperation is expanding in several strategic sectors, particularly energy, mining, transportation and agriculture.
He noted that Türkiye is intensifying efforts to reach the previously announced bilateral trade target of $10 billion.
More than 1,600 Turkish companies currently operate in Algeria with investments exceeding $8 billion in sectors including industry, mining, agriculture, construction, pharmaceuticals and infrastructure, Erdoğan said.
The president also highlighted an Ankara business forum held earlier Thursday, where representatives from the private sectors of both countries discussed new investment and partnership opportunities.
“We will continue working together in the coming period to expand mutual investments and private-sector cooperation,” Erdoğan said.
Addressing regional developments, Erdoğan warned that the conflict triggered by “Israel’s provocations and attacks” continues to negatively affect energy markets.
“The war in our region, which began with Israel’s provocations and schemes, continues to adversely impact energy markets in particular,” he said.
Erdoğan stressed that Türkiye had invested years ago in building “reliable, stable and sustainable partnerships” and is now reinforcing long-term cooperation in energy supply security, especially in natural gas.
He also called for stronger collaboration in renewable energy and emerging technologies, saying both countries should explore new partnership opportunities in those areas.
Turkish opposition leader Özgür Özel voiced support Thursday for Türkiye’s domestic defense industry projects, including the Kaan fighter jet program, during a visit to the SAHA 2026 International Defense, Aerospace and Space Industry Fair in Istanbul.
Özel, leader of the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP), toured exhibition stands featuring some of Türkiye’s flagship defense systems, including the Altay battle tank, Türkiye’s first intercontinental ballistic missile Yıldırımhan and unmanned aerial vehicles such as Akinci and TB3.
Speaking to reporters after the visit, Özel described the event as a major international gathering connecting global defense buyers with Turkish suppliers and manufacturers.
“We are eagerly waiting for the day Kaan flies with its domestically produced engine, and we fully support it,” Özel said, referring to Türkiye’s fifth-generation fighter jet project led by Turkish Aerospace Industries (TUSAŞ).
Özel also stressed the growing importance of air defense systems in light of recent regional conflicts, citing both the Russia-Ukraine war and tensions involving Iran.
“The last few years have taught the world many things,” he said. “They showed us how important air defense systems are.”
The CHP leader said Türkiye needed stronger independent defense capabilities, including advanced naval and missile defense systems, arguing that relying solely on NATO or allied military assets would leave the country vulnerable.
“If you have a steel dome protecting Türkiye from missiles fired from Iran, you sleep comfortably,” he noted. “Otherwise, you wait for NATO to intervene or for American naval assets to provide defense missiles.”
During the visit, Özel boarded the domestically produced Gökbey helicopter, tested an air pistol at one of the stands and drove a space exploration vehicle displayed by a university technology club.
Despite his supportive remarks on Turkish defense, Özel recently drew criticism over comments regarding rocket tests conducted by Turkish manufacturer Roketsan in the northern province of Sinop.
Speaking at an event in Sinop, Özel argued that the company’s missile testing activities should be moved elsewhere, saying the tests negatively affected fishing in the Black Sea city.
“Fish are frightened by the missiles,” Özel said, adding that tourists were disturbed by rockets flying overhead and that the noise caused marine life to abandon nesting areas.
The remarks triggered widespread criticism and ridicule on social media, with accusing the opposition leader of undermining Türkiye’s defense industry at a time of heightened regional tensions.
Turkish authorities detained 32 suspects in two separate operations targeting the Gülenist Terror Group (FETÖ), security officials said Thursday.
In the eastern province of Malatya, police detained 23 suspects in simultaneous raids across 17 provinces as part of an investigation coordinated by the Malatya Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office.
The operation was carried out by teams from the National Intelligence Organization (MIT), police intelligence units and counterterrorism officers, the Malatya Police Department said in a statement.
The raids targeted suspects accused of operating within FETÖ’s covert network inside the police force. The operation covered Malatya as well as Adana, Ankara, Batman, Gaziantep, Hatay, Istanbul, Izmir, Kahramanmaraş, Kayseri, Kilis, Konya, Mardin, Ordu, Osmaniye, Şanlıurfa and Trabzon.
In a separate Izmir-based operation, nine suspects were detained in raids targeting the group’s alleged hideouts, police said.
The Izmir Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office coordinated the operation, which was carried out by counterterrorism and intelligence police. Authorities said one of the suspects, identified by the initials S.N., was accused of serving as the group’s so-called police handler.
Other suspects were accused of using ByLock, an encrypted messaging app Turkish authorities say was used by FETÖ members, and of maintaining active roles within the group’s hierarchy.
Police said the suspects were found in so-called “gaybubet houses,” hideouts allegedly used by fugitive members of the terrorist group.
Authorities said nine of 10 targeted suspects were detained in the Izmir operation, while efforts continued to capture one fugitive. The detainees were taken to police headquarters for questioning.
Türkiye designates FETÖ as a terrorist group, blaming it for the 2016 failed coup in which 252 people were killed, and 2,734 were wounded.
Ankara also accuses the terrorist group of being behind a long-running campaign to overthrow the state through the infiltration of Turkish institutions, particularly the military, police and judiciary.
A parliamentary committee set up after two school shootings in Şanlıurfa and Kahramanmaraş last month held its second meeting on Thursday. Yusuf Beyazıt, the lawmaker who heads the committee for investigation into school shootings and digital risks, said at yesterday’s session that they would opt for a road map delving into the root causes of violence and providing a solution, instead of adapting to a censoring mindset in the fight against risks and abuse.
Beyazıt said the committee would act responsibly for the safety of children. “We will not allow the privacy of families of the dear children who died in the shooting and those injured in the shootings.
“We will work to evaluate the cause-and-effect relationships behind the incidents and, from a holistic perspective, seek not only to determine what happened but also to understand why this situation could not be prevented. The committee’s work will pave the way for result- and solution-oriented steps. We need to address the issue comprehensively, considering its family, school and education, digital risk, and psychological dimensions. We must acknowledge that children and young people are part of and influenced by the family, the school, and increasingly developing and widespread digital platforms. Drawing lessons from these tragic incidents, one of the most important duties of our commission is to present a regulatory, supportive, and guiding report, rather than one based on prohibitions and restrictions, on how our children are affected within all these relationships, the consequences of these effects, and how possible negative outcomes can be prevented,” he said.
Isa Mesih Şahin, a member of Parliament from Istanbul for the ruling Justice and Development (AK Party), stated that the issue should not be reduced solely to school security. “This is a multidimensional issue. We will identify the problems from every angle, discuss any shortcomings, if there are any, and try to take precautions. I also consider it important, in terms of identifying the problem, that teachers from different regions of Türkiye be heard in this committee,” he said.
A women’s collective known as “Peace Mothers” visited the offices of the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) at Parliament on Thursday. The visit is a rare instance of outreach between the two sides that would never have been possible before 2024. Peace Mothers represent people who have a next of kin, mostly sons and daughters who joined the PKK terrorist group and died in counterterrorism operations or served prison terms for PKK membership. The MHP, a government ally, represents an ideology strictly opposing the existence of the PKK.
In the company of Ayşegül Doğan, a spokesperson for the pro-PKK Peoples’ Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party), activists met the MHP’s deputy parliamentary group chairs, Erkan Akçay and Filiz Kılıç. The visit came two days after MHP leader Devlet Bahçeli, who launched the terror-free Türkiye initiative in 2024, renewed his commitment to the initiative for the PKK’s disarmament and proposed a new role for the terrorist group’s jailed ringleader, Abdullah Öcalan.
Although the MHP has started warming up to relations with the DEM Party after the initiative began, it is the first time that a group so closely associated with the PKK has met the party’s representatives. Some members of Peace Mothers were sentenced in 2006 for propaganda of the terrorist group, one year before Bahçeli called on the government to execute Öcalan by hanging.
The terror-free Türkiye initiative seeks to end the decades-old campaign of violence by the PKK and cement Turkish-Kurdish unity, as Bahçeli and President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan have highlighted repeatedly. The PKK, for decades, exploited the disenfranchised Kurdish community, claiming to fight for their rights and for a self-styled “Kurdistan.” Bahçeli vowed to proceed with the initiative and, at one point, said he was willing to “even sacrifice life” to see terrorism ended in Türkiye. The initiative is largely embraced by society, though it had its detractors as well, claiming that it was a “betrayal” to victims of terrorism. Proponents of the initiative, however, insist that the plan is unilateral and Türkiye will not take any steps, let alone give concessions to the PKK, unless the terrorist group is fully disarmed.
Behiye Yalçın, Afife Kartal and Müzeyyen Bütün, three members of the collective, gifted white scarves symbolizing their movement to MHP officials, to be delivered to Bahçeli. In return, Akçay and Kılıç presented them with yellow scarves. The “mothers” are also scheduled to visit officials from the MHP ally, the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party). Last year, they attended a parliamentary committee set up exclusively for discussing future legal steps for the PKK’s disarmament.
Belgian Foreign Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Maxime Prevot said Thursday that Türkiye is an indispensable partner for Europe’s security and economic architecture, arguing that discussing the continent’s future defense framework without Ankara would be impossible.
Speaking to Anadolu Agency (AA) ahead of a major Belgian economic mission to Türkiye scheduled for May 10-14, Prevot said the visit, led by Queen Mathilde, aims to deepen trade, as well as strategic and institutional ties between the two countries.
“Without Türkiye, there is no way to speak about Europe’s security architecture,” Prevot said, pointing to Ankara’s geopolitical role, defense industry growth and NATO membership.
The Belgian delegation will include more than 400 representatives from over 200 companies, as well as officials and academics, in what Prevot described as an opportunity to strengthen long-standing bilateral ties.
Belgium and Türkiye have maintained diplomatic relations since the 19th century, when Belgium became one of the first European states represented in Istanbul under the Ottoman Empire.
Prevot highlighted Türkiye’s rapid expansion in the defense sector, saying the country’s defense industry had grown by “300%,” making it a significant actor in Europe’s broader security landscape.
“Türkiye is more strategic than ever from a geopolitical point of view,” he said. “It is essential to address challenges ranging from industrial supply chains to Europe’s global security architecture together with Türkiye.”
The Belgian foreign minister rejected comparisons placing Türkiye alongside Russia and China in European strategic discussions.
“It is strange to use Türkiye in the same sentence as Russia and China,” Prevot said. “Türkiye is a NATO ally and also one of the candidate countries for accession to the European Union. Türkiye should not be ‘contained’ or ‘limited.’ We should work with Türkiye as a strategic partner.”
Prevot also called for the modernization of the EU-Türkiye Customs Union, saying the current framework, signed in 1996, no longer reflects today’s economic realities.
“At the time, it focused mainly on industrial goods and did not include services, agriculture or modern dispute resolution mechanisms,” he said. “We cannot address the shared economic challenges of 2026 with a framework designed 30 years ago.”
On regional security, Prevot praised Türkiye’s diplomatic role in efforts linked to the war in Ukraine and broader regional crises.
He said Türkiye had supported mediation initiatives and continued to emphasize the importance of international law and territorial integrity.
“Türkiye is reminding the international community loudly of the importance of respecting a rules-based order,” Prevot said.
As NATO’s southeastern flank, Türkiye carries “a special responsibility,” he added, stressing that Europe must fully recognize Türkiye’s strategic importance not only economically but also for the security of the entire continent.
Türkiye vital partner
On the other hand, European Commissioner for the Mediterranean Dubravka Suica described Türkiye as a key strategic partner for the European Union, highlighting its pivotal location linking Europe, Asia and the Middle East.
In a written interview with Anadolu Agency (AA) following her visit to Ankara on Wednesday, Suica said her appointment as the first European Commissioner for the Mediterranean reflects the EU’s ambition to “step up partnerships” and adopt a more focused approach toward the Mediterranean and the Gulf region, noting that her portfolio also covers Gulf relations.
“A strengthened Mediterranean partnership is a strategic imperative for Europe, because our common security, resilience and prosperity can only be built together,” she said.
Highlighting Türkiye’s importance, Suica said: “Türkiye is a key partner for the EU. In today’s rapidly changing global context, a stronger, trust-based partnership is a clear win-win for both sides.”
She said Türkiye plays an important role in the wider Middle East and stressed the need to “deepen cooperation further to ensure stability in this volatile region.”
Referring to her recent visit, Suica said discussions covered regional developments, including the Gulf, tensions involving Iran, as well as the situations in Syria and Gaza.
She also underlined “triangular cooperation” under the Pact for the Mediterranean, saying Türkiye could participate in initiatives related to economic development, connectivity and energy.
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