Politics
Erdoğan hails resistance to coup bid, urges unity to honor the fallen
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s first stopover in remembrance events for victims of the July 15, 2016, coup attempt was Parliament in Ankara. Before heading to a police headquarters where police officers were slain by military infiltrators of the Gülenist Terror Group (FETÖ), Erdoğan addressed a commemoration ceremony at the Turkish Grand National Assembly.
Erdoğan heaped praise on the nation for resisting the attempt, adding that they should maintain the unity that was on display nine years ago to build on the efforts for a terror-free Türkiye. He was referring to an ongoing process where the PKK terrorist group began its disarmament last week.
The president, who had battled lawsuits and ultimatums from the powerful elite opposing his Justice and Development Party (AK Party) throughout his political career, overcame the odds to run the country when FETÖ first attempted to overthrow him in late 2013. The 2016 attempt was the most dangerous among them as he barely escaped an assassination attempt by FETÖ’s putschists. The charismatic leader managed to rally the nation to stand against FETÖ’s would-be junta, and an unprecedented public resistance quelled the attempt, at the cost of 253 lives.
Parliament was among the targets of the putschists who launched airstrikes on the complex during the coup attempt, though they failed to deter the lawmakers who flocked to the building and read a joint statement opposing the coup.
In his speech, Erdoğan likened resistance against the coup attempt to what happened in Çanakkale more than a century ago, referring to the Turkish army’s epic struggle against invading forces in the northwestern Turkish province, to counter the Allied forces trying to pass the Çanakkale Strait, trying to reach the Ottoman capital, Istanbul. Home to the renowned Gallipoli campaign, Çanakkale set an example for future public resistance against enemies, and years later, the War of Independence under the leadership of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk expelled invading forces.
“On the night of July 15, the nation created an epic that will be proudly remembered forever. It was the latest example of the strength and invulnerability of a nation as long as it stood as one and united,” Erdoğan said.
He noted that that night, Türkiye defeated “mankurts who sold their soul,” referring to members of FETÖ. “The plot by the ringleader of FETÖ, who is buried in a pit after his death as a stateless person, was foiled by the brave stance of our nation,” Erdoğan added.
FETÖ leader Fetullah Gülen died in Pennsylvania, U.S., in 2024 after spending years there.
“We drained the swamp they tried to push our country into. Our nation staved off an attempt to occupy the country. It was a critical turning point in our history,” he said.
Erdoğan said July 15 was also a litmus test that laid bare those opposing the coup and those “who supported it.”
“Our martyrs and veterans stood against terrorists wearing military uniforms, while others claimed it was staged. Some sipped their coffee watching the coup attempt, waiting to see what would happen next,” Erdoğan said, in thinly veiled references to the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP).
CHP’s current chair, Özgür Özel, was among those rushing to Parliament to express opposition to the coup attempt, but the party, for a long time, adhered to the discourse that the coup attempt was a plot by the state, not FETÖ. Özel’s predecessor, Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, was photographed enjoying a cup of coffee as he was watching the coup attempt on TV. After he conveniently left Istanbul’s Atatürk Airport, he arrived as the putschists were invading the place on the night of July 15, 2016.
The president thanked lawmakers for standing for democracy that night. “I thank all lawmakers regardless of their political affiliations. Ultimately, the sacrifices of our martyrs and veterans have not been in vain. Terror-free Türkiye, we are building step by step, will be their legacy,” he said.
The initiative was launched by government ally Devlet Bahçeli last year, and under the leadership of Erdoğan, it led to success when the PKK terrorist group heeded the call of its jailed ringleader Abdullah Öcalan last February and announced in May that it would dissolve itself.
Last Friday, the terrorist group made good on its promise, and 30 members of the PKK burned down their weapons in a ceremony in northern Iraq. More terrorists are expected to lay down arms in the coming months, while Parliament will tackle the steps in the initiative in the coming weeks.
A parliamentary committee is expected to be set up to form a legal framework on the initiative that, so far, has proceeded with unilateral steps by the PKK. Erdoğan said he had confidence in the “eternal brotherhood” of Turks and Kurds and Turkish democracy’s “problem-solving capacity.”
“I heartily believe that you will put aside your differences as you did on July 15, 2016, and you will support our country’s struggle to get rid of terrorism,” he said. Opposition parties have been largely supportive of the terror-free initiative, although some have expressed reservations and declined to participate in the parliamentary work.
Three senior members of the European Commission are set to visit Türkiye on Tuesday in a rare joint trip that Ankara views as a sign of renewed momentum in relations between Türkiye and the European Union amid shifting geopolitical and security dynamics, according to Foreign Ministry sources.
European Commission Executive Vice President and High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Kaja Kallas, Commissioner for Enlargement Marta Kos and Commissioner for Internal Affairs and Migration Magnus Brunner are expected to hold talks with Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan in Ankara.
Foreign Ministry sources said the simultaneous visit by three European commissioners reflects the growing strategic importance the EU attaches to relations with Türkiye as Europe confronts increasing geopolitical, security and economic challenges. The visit comes one day before Ireland assumes the rotating presidency of the Council of the European Union and is expected to contribute to the positive atmosphere that has emerged in Türkiye-EU ties over the past year.
During his meetings, Fidan is expected to reaffirm that Türkiye’s full membership in the European Union remains one of Ankara’s strategic priorities under the vision of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.
The Turkish minister is also expected to stress that the enlargement process should proceed based on fairness and merit and that Türkiye should participate in all EU mechanisms and engagement processes on an equal footing with other candidate countries.
Fidan will argue that Türkiye’s eventual accession would strengthen not only the country but also the European Union by enhancing its competitiveness, resilience and geopolitical influence, the ministry said.
He is expected to call on Brussels to remove restrictions that have weighed on bilateral relations since European Union foreign ministers adopted measures against Türkiye in July 2019 over tensions in the Eastern Mediterranean.
Economic cooperation is expected to feature prominently in the discussions. Fidan is expected to press for the long-delayed modernization of the EU-Türkiye Customs Union, saying negotiations should begin without further delay. He is also expected to underline Türkiye’s role as an integral part of European manufacturing supply chains and call for Turkish-origin goods produced within the Customs Union framework to be treated as European products.
Migration and visa liberalization are also expected to be on the agenda. Ankara is expected to call for the completion of the visa liberalization dialogue and for more effective implementation of recent measures aimed at facilitating Schengen visa applications for Turkish citizens, including commercial truck drivers.
Fidan is also expected to advocate closer cooperation on regional connectivity projects spanning the Black Sea, South Caucasus and Central Asia, describing Türkiye as a key partner in efforts to strengthen regional stability and economic resilience.
Regional security issues, including Russia’s war in Ukraine, developments in the South Caucasus, Gaza, Syria and Iran, are expected to be discussed, with Türkiye emphasizing the need for regular, action-oriented dialogue and coordination with the EU.
Since the beginning of 2026, Türkiye and the EU have resumed high-level dialogue meetings on trade, migration and security, science and innovation, climate and economic affairs. Türkiye was also invited to informal meetings of EU foreign ministers, while the European Investment Bank has partially resumed operations in the country.
European Council President António Costa and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen are also expected to travel to Türkiye alongside Kallas for the NATO summit in Ankara on July 7-8.
The EU remains Türkiye’s largest trading partner, while Türkiye is the bloc’s fifth-largest trading partner. Bilateral trade reached approximately $233 billion in 2025.
The next Türkiye-EU High-Level Economic Dialogue is scheduled to take place in Istanbul on July 2 and is expected to focus on deepening trade, investment and financial cooperation.
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan held a phone call with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz to discuss bilateral ties as well as regional and global developments, Türkiye’s Communications Directorate said Monday.
During the call, Erdoğan noted Türkiye aims to further strengthen relations with Germany and underlined the importance of continuing mutual steps to advance cooperation between the two countries.
The leaders also discussed the NATO leaders’ summit scheduled to be held in Ankara. Erdoğan said Türkiye expects the summit to demonstrate a strong will to strengthen Europe’s defense within NATO while preserving the transatlantic bond.
Erdoğan also stressed thatTürkiye was making intensive efforts to help bring Russia’s war against Ukraine to an end through a lasting peace. He said Ankara was continuing work to revive negotiations and restart the diplomatic process between Moscow and Kyiv.
Türkiye has maintained contacts with both Russia and Ukraine throughout the war and has repeatedly offered to facilitate talks aimed at ending the conflict.
Türkiye is indebted to people oppressed by Israel, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said while speaking at an event organized by the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party) on Sunday.
On the same day the Israeli government approved the recognition of the so-called Armenian genocide, Erdoğan told fellow party members at the event in Sakarya that they would hold those behind the Gaza genocide to account.
The Israeli government on Sunday unanimously recognized the World War I “genocide,” in an apparent rebuke to Türkiye after stalling similar efforts for recognition for years. The Netanyahu administration, which is behind the war crimes in Gaza that has killed tens of thousands since 2023 and practically razed the Palestinian enclave to the ground, had hinted earlier at the issue. In almost every instance Erdoğan spoke about the crimes of Netanyahu and “his network of murderers,” Netanyahu and his associates were quick to bring up what they called the “genocide” against Kurds and Armenians by Türkiye.
“A historic decision: the Israeli government has unanimously approved Foreign Minister Gideon Saar’s proposal to recognize the Armenian genocide,” Israel’s Foreign Ministry said on Sunday. The Cabinet’s decision must still be ratified by Parliament. Saar said at the Cabinet meeting that the “genocide” has been subject to “denial and minimization.”
Successive Israeli governments had avoided formally recognizing the so-called genocide, in part to preserve relations with Türkiye, once one of Israel’s closest strategic partners in the region. Under Erdoğan, however, the relations on the brink of revival after a period of tensions, again, under Erdoğan, took an irreversible hit. The Turkish leader garnered global admiration for standing against Israel’s genocide of Palestinians and often likened Netanyahu to Hitler, the architect of the Holocaust. Saar insisted that the recognition was not an act of retaliation.
The issue of the so-called genocide has deeply affected possible ties between Türkiye and Armenia. A strong Armenian lobby touted the incidents in the Ottoman territories between 1915 and 1917, which involved the relocation of Armenians en masse as genocide. Türkiye rejects the accusations although it has acknowledged that Armenians, alongside Turks, died during the period. Türkiye also disputes the account that 1.5 million Armenians died and states that the actual death toll, often linked to diseases and other factors, was far below this figure.
Though the issue has overshadowed the possibility of normalization between Türkiye and Armenia in the past, it appears to have taken a back seat in a new push for revival of ties, in parallel with a similar process between Azerbaijan and Armenia. Under Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, who recently secured another term with an election victory, ties have flourished with delegations working to iron out differences. Pashinyan and his top diplomats also visited Türkiye in a rare display of steps towards normalization. Though Armenia did not abandon its claim of a genocide taking place during the last days of Ottoman Empire, the Pashinyan government is less vocal about it and focuses on the future of relations rather than the past, best symbolized in the “Real Armenia” doctrine.
“The ummah has expectations from us,” Erdoğan told the Consultation and Assessment Meeting of the AK Party, an annual retreat for lawmakers, administrators and ministers. “We made promises to the oppressed. We have a responsibility,” he said.
Erdoğan then delved into the tragic lives of Palestinians cut short by Israeli attacks. He reminded how Hind Rajab, a 5-year-old Palestinian girl, was deliberately killed while awaiting for ambulance after Israel fired on her family’s car and killed her relatives in 2024. “They killed infants, they killed children in the parks, schools, hospitals. They massacred thousands of babies. A genocide took place in Gaza and they still attack. Undoubtedly, we will hold them accountable for this genocide. We will, we will never neglect doing so. Allah willing, people here will be able to do that,” Erdoğan told the event.
Muhittin Böcek, the former mayor of Antalya who was arrested in a corruption probe, admitted paying 5 million euros ($5.5 million) to Ekrem Imamoğlu, another former mayor charged with corruption, for candidacy at the Turkish main opposition CHP.
Böcek came forward with more confessions this week, long after his arrest in a corruption investigation. Böcek told investigators that he had a deal with Ekrem Imamoğlu, a former mayor of Istanbul, to pay 15 million euros in exchange of securing a candidacy for Antalya in the past elections. Böcek’s statements made public over the weekend indicate the influence of Imamoğlu within the party, which declared him as a future presidential candidate following his 2025 arrest on charges of rampant corruption at Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality (IBB).
In his earlier statements where he sought a leniency in his future sentencing, Böcek has admitted making a payment to party’s headquarters for candidacy in municipal elections. He has claimed that the party’s then chair, Özgür Özel, instructed him to deliver 950,000 euros to Ferdi Zeyrek, the late mayor of western city of Manisa and a close associate of Özel, to contribute to his campaign for candidacy. In his new statement, Böcek said Imamoğlu asked for 15 million euros and he used “hawala” system to pay 5 million euros of the request and skipped the rest of the payment when Imamoğlu was arrested in March 2025. Böcek also claimed that Imamoğlu asked him to cover his expenses for the Mediterranean leg of his future presidential campaign.
In his statement to prosecutors in Antalya, Böcek repeated his previous statement and explained that he traveled to Manisa upon the direction of Özel, before the 2024 local elections. Böcek said he went to Manisa on Jan. 15, 2024, before his candidacy had been officially announced.
In his statement, Böcek claimed that after a meeting in Ankara, Özel instructed him to provide financial and project support to Zeyrek. Böcek said that while traveling to Manisa, he carried approximately 950,000 euros in a bag. He stated that after a social project presentation, he was briefly alone with Ferdi Zeyrek and left the money next to his desk during that time.
Muhittin Böcek also described another process he experienced regarding his candidacy for Antalya Metropolitan Municipality during the 2024 local elections. Böcek said that the mayor of Muratpaşa Municipality had met İmamoğlu, received certain assurances regarding the candidacy process in return of payments.
Böcek said that, in order to clarify his own candidacy, he traveled to Istanbul on Nov. 30, 2023, and held a meeting lasting approximately one hour with Imamoğlu at a hotel. Böcek stated that his private secretary Yasin Yellice witnessed the meeting and that afterward they took a photo together on the hotel balcony, which he shared on his social media account.
According to Böcek’s statement, İmamoğlu told him during the meeting that he had not promised the candidacy to anyone else and that he would choose Böcek. However, the most notable part of the meeting was the alleged financial support requested for the election campaign and İmamoğlu’s presidential ambitions. Böcek claimed that İmamoğlu told him he needed financial resources for his election campaign and also said that he was planning to run for the presidency in the future, sharing his political roadmap. According to his account, İmamoğlu said that Antalya would take on important responsibilities both economically and socially during this process and that Böcek needed to be prepared for this.
Böcek said that after returning to Antalya, he told a friend that he needed €5 million and would use the money to make a payment in Istanbul. According to his statement, a few days later the person he met took a photo of a 100 Turkish lira banknote and gave him a piece of paper inside an envelope with a name and phone number written on it. Böcek said he was told that the payment could be collected at Istanbul’s Grand Bazaar using the banknote and the paper.
Böcek stated that he believed this method was a secret payment system known as “hawala” and said he had no way of knowing from which currency exchange office the money was collected.
The former mayor said that, in order to cover part of the requested amount, he called İmamoğlu on Dec. 16, 2023, and traveled to Istanbul the next day, to meet with him again. Böcek stated that he went to a building used by İmamoğlu as an election campaign office, describing it as an office located on the ground floor of a high-rise plaza.
Böcek claimed that during their private meeting, he handed the banknote and the paper containing the phone number to İmamoğlu and said that he would settle the remaining part of the requested money over time. He also said that he pledged to win many districts of Antalya in the election and presented his work regarding the districts to İmamoğlu.
Another notable detail in Böcek’s statement concerned the remaining portion of the money he had pledged. Muhittin Böcek said that he did not provide the remaining support he claimed he had promised to İmamoğlu because İmamoğlu was arrested. He also stated that the same payment method was used to cover the election advertising expenses arranged by his son, Gökhan Böcek.
The former mayor also talked about the political ambitions of Imamoğlu and how his influence spread across the party. He said Imamoğlu began working on plans for the presidency after his success in the Istanbul elections and soon “turned into a political power by himself above the power of the party” and intervened to selection of mayoral candidates. He claimed that the Özel administration was dependent on Imamoğlu’s opinion in most of the work they’ve done in the party.
He also referred to new CHP Chairman Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu’s recent statement that “Municipalities are not places that should meet the demands of party headquarters and leaders.” Böcek argued that these words reflected the essence of the ongoing debate, saying that one reason CHP municipal governance’s strong public support had weakened was that political ambitions had been placed ahead of municipal services.
Parliament is anticipated to discuss a draft bill soon for the next stage of the terror-free Türkiye initiative, which began in 2024. The initiative, which aims for full disarmament of the terrorist group PKK, will be reinforced with the new law, which will be temporary in nature and will have a clear definition about the fate of PKK members. The law will also exclude Abdullah Öcalan and other PKK members who were sentenced to aggravated life imprisonment, though it may offer leniency to other members of the terrorist group. The law will only be implemented after Turkish authorities confirmed PKK is fully dissolved and has abandoned arms.
The AK Party sources say the law’s rationale was offering its benefits to members of the group only after they dissolve it, and Türkiye is able to confirm this. National Intelligence Organization (MIT) and Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) are authorized to confirm the disarmament, but the National Security Council (NSC) will have the final say on the matter. Sources say that the confirmation will be announced only after the disarmament process reaches around 80%.
It is unclear how long the law will remain in force, but a time span of six months to one year is considered. It will definitely exclude Öcalan, who was sentenced to death on June 29, 1999, on charges of treason, before his sentence was commuted to life imprisonment. Any leniency in prison terms for Öcalan and other PKK members committed to acts of terrorism will be out of question. Those convicted of the grave acts of terrorism and currently abroad at large will also be exempt from leniency.
The law does not bring amnesty to PKK members, and it will only annul terrorism charges for those imprisoned on charges of PKK membership and those who face prosecution for similar charges. This means an early release from prison for convicts or a significant reduction in their sentences. In most terrorism cases, suspects face a wide variety of charges in addition to charges related to acts defined as terrorism under Turkish laws. For instance, a convict involved in bombing will only be sentenced or serve his/her sentence for manslaughter instead of terrorism. Currently, Türkiye hosts 4,300 people convicted of terrorism in its prisons. The case of each will be re-examined by the courts once the law is implemented.
For PKK members residing abroad and without any criminal record in Türkiye, the country plans to allow their return, but they will be subject to judicial control.
PKK’s senior cadres, who currently hide in Qandil mountains in northern Iraq, will also be exempted from the law, while sources say they already left the hideouts for several other destinations. Sources also say that it is believed that the majority of PKK members would not return to Türkiye even if the law is implemented, and they would prefer settling in Iraq, where they spent years.
On Saturday, Parliamentary Speaker Numan Kurtulmuş said the initiative reached to an important stage and “80-90% of the work is done.” Kurtulmuş, who chaired a parliamentary committee on the initiative, said the terrorism would be “off the agenda of Türkiye soon.”
Kurtulmuş told broadcaster CNN Türk that the regime change in neighboring Syria, where the PKK’s wing YPG, has been active throughout the civil war, contributed to the initiative. “It became clear that it is now impossible to threaten Türkiye through Syria,” he said.
He expressed hope that all political parties would act unanimously to pass the law. “If we relax caution and do not act with urgency, I am afraid that provocations will emerge to undermine the process,” he said.
Reinstated Chairperson Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu is expected to fire at least 50 more people from the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) within two months amid a growing rift between his supporters and the supporters of ousted Chair Özgür Özel. Özel, for now, is spared from the wrath of the Kılıçdaroğlu administration. The party denied claims that he would be removed from his current tenure as parliamentary group chair of the party.
Nevertheless, a report by the Sabah newspaper says at least 50 provincial chairs of the party will lose their seats by September. So far, the party parted ways with 10 provincial chairs who sided with Özgür Özel in the aftermath of a court verdict that annulled Özel’s chairmanship over allegations of vote-buying in a 2023 intra-party election. Özel views himself as the de facto chair of the party and repeatedly called Kılıçdaroğlu to hold a new intra-party election. The Kılıçdaroğlu administration announced earlier that the process for a new election will be launched in September. Although Özel is confident of winning a new election, he is also rumored to be preparing to switch to a new party or establish a new one, based on the outcome of the process, which will be held two years before the scheduled date for the presidential elections.
Kılıçdaroğlu, glorified by CHP supporters including Özel during his presidential election campaign against incumbent President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, found himself in hot water after accepting the job to lead the party again, three years after losing the intra-party race to Özel. Özel repeatedly condemns the move and says Kılıçdaroğlu works for the government, claiming that the court verdict ousting him was politically motivated. Özel’s supporters brand Kılıçdaroğlu as a “traitor.” This slogan was chanted en masse when Özel was visiting a cemevi, an Alevi place of worship, in Istanbul earlier this week. The incident sparked outrage among several Alevi associations. Although the Alevi community’s political views are diverse, it counts fervent supporters of both Özel and Kılıçdaroğlu among its members. Seven Alevi federations released a joint declaration on Saturday over the incident in Istanbul and accused the Özel supporters of politicizing a place of worship. The federations said, “ugly slogans constituted a hate crime.”
“Certain political actors and their supporters turned the cemevi into a venue for a political rally. Things that should never happen at a cemevi happened. We are also worried to see that politicians present at Garip Dede Cemevi did not intervene in this act of disrespect,” the joint statement said.
20 suspects were referred to the courthouse in the investigation against Seferihisar Municipality
Türkiye calls for stronger economic integration among Islamic countries
BREAKING NEWS | NATO Parliamentarians Summit! Numan Kurtulmuş: We are in the most difficult period in history
20 suspects were referred to the courthouse in the investigation against Seferihisar Municipality
Türkiye calls for stronger economic integration among Islamic countries
BREAKING NEWS | NATO Parliamentarians Summit! Numan Kurtulmuş: We are in the most difficult period in history
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