Politics
Erdoğan to Netanyahu: You’ll end up like Hitler
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan stepped up his criticism of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his Zionist regime. “Those following in the footsteps of Hitler will end up as all tyrants did throughout history,” he said at an event in Ankara on Thursday.
At the Congress and Culture Center of the Presidential Complex in Ankara, Erdoğan hosted an awards ceremony of the Turkish Red Crescent Society. The president heaped praise on one of the oldest charity organizations of Türkiye and outlined its international aid efforts. As he spoke about the Red Crescent’s efforts to deliver more than 26,000 tons of humanitarian aid to Gaza, Erdoğan also continued his scathing criticism of the Zionist regime of Israel. Erdoğan, who called on the world to stop Israel in a speech on Wednesday, this time called upon the world to hold the Netanyahu administration accountable for the crimes it has committed.
Erdoğan likened the Zionist regime’s attacks across the region to “a shark smelling blood.”
“Eventually, they will pay for their crimes,” he stated.
The president noted that Türkiye both extended its helping hand to those affected by Israel’s attacks and exerted efforts for “this network of murderers to be held accountable.”
“Under its current administration, Israel is nothing but a factory producing instability and chaos, feeding upon blood and tears,” the president stated.
Erdoğan and other Turkish officials often compare the Netanyahu administration to rulers of Nazi Germany, highlighting the irony that a country whose citizens are among Holocaust survivors is now engaged in what Türkiye calls a genocide of Palestinians. Türkiye is a party to an international trial on genocide charges against Israel initiated by South Africa and cut off all ties with Israel after the renewal of Palestinian-Israeli conflict in 2023, shortly after a period where Ankara and Tel Aviv appeared close to rapprochement in their downgraded ties.
Shortly after Erdoğan on Wednesday called on the world to stop Israel’s murderous campaign, Netanyahu took to social media and claimed Israel was morally superior to Türkiye in a sharp retort to Erdoğan.
Türkiye is a fierce critic of Israel and one of the few countries in its region to openly defy the Netanyahu administration’s genocidal campaign of expansionism that spread from the Palestinian territories to Lebanon and beyond. For Ankara, Israel is the biggest obstacle to peace in the wider region.
Red Crescent’s success
In his speech, Erdoğan also praised the Turkish Red Crescent, which ranked first among similar organizations across the world last year with the amount of aid delivered to the most countries. “This accomplishment is also an indicator of our nation’s generosity and sense of solidarity,” Erdoğan said.
He noted the Red Crescent’s role especially in the aftermath of the Feb. 6, 2023, earthquakes and how it delivered meals, food, thousands of tents and blankets while operating mobile kitchens.
“In Gaza, where the Zionist genocide network led by Netanyahu continues its attacks, our Red Crescent has delivered more than 26,000 tons of humanitarian aid supplies to the region to date. Since Oct. 7, it has contributed to the tables of our Gazan brothers and sisters with 15 million meals. Through its soup kitchen services, it has distributed hot meals to 30,000 people daily. Providing food services to children in Gaza through the Gaza Cheerful Children Project initiated after the cease-fire, the Red Crescent is also simultaneously carrying out psychosocial support activities for children,” Erdoğan said.
Once Türkiye’s main opposition party, the Republican People’s Party (CHP) is now a pale shadow of its former self after former Chair Özgür Özel left the party and founded the New Party (YP). Lawmakers and other members resigned from the CHP en masse to join Özel in his new party, but party sources say most of them were not longtime members of Türkiye’s oldest political party. Instead, a significant portion of those who resigned had joined the CHP during Özel’s tenure as chairperson, which began after an intraparty election in November 2023.
The CHP and the YP have been engaged in a bitter dispute since Özel sought to reclaim the chairmanship he lost following a court ruling in May. Özel appealed the verdict, while his predecessor, Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, returned to office and pledged to weed out “corrupt” members, referring to officials close to Özel whose names became entangled in corruption investigations. Before and after Özel established the YP, a wave of resignations and expulsions swept through the CHP.
The YP claims that nearly 700,000 people have resigned from the CHP, while CHP officials reject that figure and maintain that resignations have largely come to a halt. As the debate continues, the CHP leadership is also carrying out an internal review of the resignations. According to the CHP’s findings, the vast majority of recent resignations involve individuals who joined the party between 2024 and 2026, during Özgür Özel’s tenure as chairperson. Approximately 450,000 new members joined the CHP during that period.
Shortly after assuming the party leadership, Özgür Özel carried out what was described as a historic purge of supporters of former Chair Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu. Between 2024 and 2026, he expelled nearly 2,500 party members and placed newcomers, many of whom had never previously been part of the CHP’s ranks, in key positions within a significant number of local party organizations.
It is alleged that the majority of recent resignations from the CHP involve these “stacked members,” who were reportedly recruited by certain local political figures close to Özel in order to secure victories in internal party elections. It is also claimed that nearly all of those who resigned belong to the same group that has been helping establish the YP’s new local organizations.
Türkiye marked on Monday 12 years since Recep Tayyip Erdoğan as Türkiye’s first president elected directly by popular vote, a period that has seen the country overhaul its system of government and expand its diplomatic and defense footprint.
Erdoğan was elected Türkiye’s 12th president on Aug. 10, 2014, following a 2007 constitutional amendment that allowed the president to be chosen directly by voters for the first time in the country’s history.
He won 51.79% of the vote, receiving more than 21 million of about 40.5 million valid ballots.
Presidential Communications Director Burhanettin Duran on Monday described the 2014 election as a major turning point in Turkish democratic history, saying the direct election of the president strengthened the role of the popular will in governing the country.
Duran said Erdoğan’s election marked the beginning of a new period in which Türkiye increasingly determined its own priorities and shaped its future through the will of its people.
He said that process continues under Erdoğan’s “Century of Türkiye” vision.
“Türkiye is resolutely advancing toward a more effective, more independent and stronger position in its region and the world,” Duran said.
Shift to presidential system
Erdoğan’s presidency has coincided with a fundamental transformation of Türkiye’s system of government.
On April 16, 2017, voters approved constitutional amendments replacing the country’s parliamentary system with an executive presidential system. The referendum passed with 51.41% voting in favor and 48.59% against.
Türkiye held its first presidential and parliamentary elections under the new system on June 24, 2018.
Erdoğan, backed by the governing Justice and Development Party (AK Party) and its Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) ally, won the presidential election. He was later sworn in as the first president under the new system, and the first Cabinet under the presidential system was unveiled in July 2018.
Türkiye returned to the polls for presidential and parliamentary elections in May 2023.
Erdoğan finished first in the initial presidential vote on May 14 with 49.52%, followed by then-main opposition leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu with 44.88%. Neither candidate secured the majority required to win outright.
Erdoğan defeated Kılıçdaroğlu in the May 28 runoff, winning 52.16% of the vote against his rival’s 47.84%, securing another term as president.
Growing diplomatic role
Foreign policy has become a major component of Erdoğan’s presidency, with Türkiye seeking a more active role in regional and international crises.
Ankara has pursued diplomatic initiatives surrounding the Russia-Ukraine war and Israel’s attacks on Gaza, while also engaging in regional diplomacy amid tensions involving Iran. Türkiye was also a major supporter of Azerbaijan during its conflict with Armenia over Karabakh.
Most recently, Erdoğan hosted NATO leaders in Ankara for the alliance’s 36th summit on July 7-8.
The gathering at the Presidential Complex brought together leaders from NATO’s 32 member countries, with Erdoğan holding a series of bilateral meetings on the sidelines as Ankara sought to underline Türkiye’s role in the alliance and regional security.
Erdoğan also signed a trilateral defense agreement in Mecca on Aug. 7 with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.
The Mecca Joint Defense Agreement is aimed at strengthening defense cooperation, burden-sharing and collective security among the three countries, according to Turkish officials.
Defense industry expansion
Türkiye has also expanded its domestic defense industry during Erdoğan’s presidency, increasing production of drones, missiles, naval platforms and other domestically developed systems.
The country has emerged as an increasingly prominent defense exporter and now ranks among the world’s top 15 countries in terms of defense production capacity.
Duran pointed to advances in the defense industry, domestic technology, energy, the “Blue Homeland” maritime strategy and space technologies as examples of Türkiye’s transformation over the period.
The government has also focused on reconstruction following the devastating earthquakes that struck southeastern Türkiye on Feb. 6, 2023.
More than 455,000 independent housing and commercial units have been completed in the earthquake-hit region as authorities continue rebuilding areas affected by the disaster.
‘Terror-free Türkiye’ initiative
Domestic security has meanwhile taken center stage with the government’s “Terror-free Türkiye” initiative, which authorities say is aimed at ending decades of terrorism and strengthening national unity.
A parliamentary commission established as part of the process began work under the name National Solidarity, Brotherhood and Democracy Commission.
On Aug. 8, Parliament’s Justice Committee approved proposed legislation on strengthening national solidarity and social integration as part of the initiative.
Duran said the process reflected the government’s broader emphasis on national unity, security and political stability.
“The strong will demonstrated by our nation is inspiring not only development initiatives but also the goal of a terror-free Türkiye, which strengthens our national unity and solidarity and prioritizes peace and security,” he said.
Twelve years after the landmark 2014 vote, Erdoğan remains at the center of Türkiye’s political system as his government pursues what it describes as a more independent foreign policy, expanded defense capabilities and the “Century of Türkiye” agenda.
On a scorching day with temperatures floating around 31 degrees Celsius (88 degrees Fahrenheit), lawmakers in Parliament will convene one last time before a summer recess that will end in October. On their agenda is a topic as hot as the Ankara weather: a terror-free Türkiye. Deputies are expected to give overwhelming support to a draft bill that involves the disarmament of the PKK terrorist group and reduced sentencing for nonviolent members of the group.
The passing of the law is a highly critical stage in the “terror-free Türkiye” initiative, which has so far advanced through apparently unilateral moves by the PKK after it announced its dissolution last year.
The Law on Strengthening National Solidarity and Social Integrity was approved on Saturday by Parliament’s Justice Committee after a quarrel in which lawmakers supporting and opposing the bill engaged in harsh verbal arguments.
On Monday, Parliament’s General Assembly will convene to discuss the draft law, roughly five days before the anniversary of the PKK’s first attack in Türkiye in 1984. Since then, the terrorist group has been involved in the killing of tens of thousands of people across the country, as well as troops conducting counterterrorism operations abroad. Türkiye changed its policy toward the PKK over the following decades, though it firmly opposed its existence due to the group’s separatist ambitions.
As the terrorist group started diminishing in power and influence, Devlet Bahçeli, leader of the government-allied Nationalist Movement Party (MHP), informally launched the “terror-free Türkiye” initiative on Oct. 1, 2024, the day Parliament opened its new term. This unexpected foray by a nationalist politician primarily known for advocating the execution of the PKK’s jailed ringleader Abdullah Öcalan evolved into a state initiative over time. Bahçeli’s call for Öcalan to urge his group to lay down arms met a response in the PKK’s 2025 announcement to that effect. The MHP leader, who has limited his attendance at public events due to frail health, is expected to attend the General Assembly to see what his call has culminated in.
The draft bill will come into force once authorities verify that the PKK and all of its regional affiliates have fully dissolved and handed over all weapons and munitions to security forces, and this verification is published in the Official Gazette. The bill covers crimes including founding and running the PKK, aiding and abetting the group, producing propaganda for it, and funding its operations. Suspects who were prosecuted or investigated for those crimes will have their sentences deferred for five to 10 years. The deferral period will be longer for those prosecuted for crimes carrying prison terms of over 15 years.
PKK members involved in killings, as well as those prosecuted and sentenced for crimes bearing sentences like life imprisonment before June 1, 2005, will be exempt from deferrals. This includes most senior cadres of the PKK currently in hiding in northern Iraq, as well as Abdullah Öcalan, who was earlier sentenced to life imprisonment and is currently held in an island prison near Istanbul.
Those benefiting from deferrals will have certain political and civil rights suspended for two to three years. PKK members seeking to benefit from deferrals will be allowed to apply at Turkish diplomatic missions in their current countries of residence.
Türkiye will also set up two boards to monitor the process: a monitoring board chaired by the vice president and a parliamentary board comprised of 17 members. Authorities will log every weapon, piece of ammunition, explosive and piece of equipment declared by PKK members into a registry to monitor the dissolution process.
During Saturday’s session, the Justice Committee approved the bill, which bore the signatures of 367 lawmakers, with votes in favor cast by the AK Party, the MHP, the PKK-aligned Peoples’ Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party) and the Republican People’s Party (CHP). Lawmakers from the New Party (YP) were divided over the bill, with one lawmaker voting “yes” while two other party members on the committee abstained. However, YP lawmaker Sezgin Tanrıkulu, who observed the committee’s session, announced that they would vote in favor once the bill reached the General Assembly.
The Good Party (IP) did not participate in the vote, although its members clashed with proponents of the bill during Saturday’s session. Addressing the committee, Mehmet Ökmen, director general of legislation at the Ministry of Justice, said the monitoring board would not issue any judicial decisions and would only be tasked with making suggestions regarding the process. Stating that under the Turkish legal system there is no deprivation of rights during the investigation and prosecution phases, Ökmen noted that exceptions exist under certain special laws, citing the Legal Profession Law as an example. Explaining that under this law, deprivation of rights exists while prosecution, meaning the court process, is ongoing, Ökmen noted that there are also deprivations of rights under other statutes in Turkish law.
Following the approval of the bill, Cüneyt Yüksel, chair of the Justice Committee, said they had completed work of historical significance.
“Together, we have crossed a crucial threshold toward leaving behind a heavy burden that our nation has carried for more than 40 years. I believe the determination displayed here will hold an exceptional place in Türkiye’s political and social history,” he said.
Abdülhamit Gül, deputy parliamentary group chair for the AK Party, echoed his remarks. “Today, we have carried out the first stage of an important key, an important lock opening Türkiye’s doors. We are talking about a legislative proposal submitted with 367 signatures. According to our Constitution, the signatures of 200 members of Parliament are sufficient even to submit a constitutional amendment proposal. Today, a legislative proposal has come before our Parliament with a strength greater than that of a constitutional proposal,” he said.
Türkiye on Friday firmly rejected claims that its new joint defense agreement with Saudi Arabia and Pakistan conflicts with NATO commitments or creates a rival alliance, calling such assertions a deliberate attempt to manipulate public perception.
The Presidential Communications Directorate issued the statement in response to claims circulating on social media that the Mecca Joint Defense Agreement signed by Türkiye, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan contradicts NATO’s Article 5 and establishes a parallel alliance structure.
The directorate described the claims as “completely false,” saying their origin and intent were evident and accusing those behind them of seeking to shape public perception through misinformation.
It stressed that the agreement does not contradict any of Türkiye’s existing international alliance commitments, including its obligations as a NATO member.
Instead, Ankara views the pact as a complementary cooperation mechanism designed to strengthen regional security, the directorate said.
“Türkiye’s development of regional partnerships is not an alternative to its NATO membership,” the statement said.
The directorate also rejected portrayals of the agreement as an aggressive military bloc, saying it is a defense-oriented arrangement aimed at strengthening deterrence.
It said the pact does not target any third country or alliance and is instead intended to deepen defense industry cooperation, military training and technology sharing while contributing to regional stability.
The directorate urged the public to disregard what it described as baseless claims and manipulative social media posts surrounding the agreement.
Turkish sources quoted by local media outlets confirmed on Friday that a defense pact was signed with Saudi Arabia and Pakistan as President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan departed for Saudi Arabia in the morning in a visit announced only hours ago.
The agreement between the three Muslim states brings together oil-rich Saudi Arabia and nuclear power Pakistan as well as Türkiye, which has NATO’s second-largest army and a rapidly growing defense industry. It would increase cooperation and deterrence at a time of increased regional uncertainty and threats from the war in Iran.
“The agreement is intended to strengthen collective deterrence against any act of aggression, and stipulates that any armed attack against any one of the three states shall be regarded as an attack against them all,” the Pakistani Foreign Ministry and Turkish Presidency’s Communications Directorate said in identical statements.
“It further provides for the enhancement of all aspects of defense cooperation among the three States,” the statements said, adding that the agreement was called the “Mecca Joint Defense Agreement.”
Earlier, Turkish media reports said it is likely to allow joint military exercises and training, technology transfers and the sharing of intelligence.
Saudi Arabia, whose critical infrastructure and oil facilities have come under attack as part of the war in Iran, has been looking to diversify its defense partnerships. In September, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia signed a mutual defense pact that also defines any attack on either nation as an attack on both. The agreement also comes amid rising tensions between Türkiye and Israel over Gaza and other regional conflicts, including the war in Iran and Lebanon.
A Turkish government official described the agreement as “purely defensive in nature,” saying the sides have pledged mutual support only for defense. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the issue publicly, insisted that the deal is “not against any specific actor” and was open for other regional countries to join. The agreement does not abrogate or replace any bilateral or multilateral agreements between these states or with other states and organizations, the official added.
In Islamabad, defense analyst Abdullah Khan described the agreement as a natural evolution and formalization of decades of strategic ties among Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, and Türkiye, saying a changing regional security environment and the evolving nature of warfare had increased the need for closer cooperation. Khan said the pact was “purely defensive” and not directed against any country, with collective deterrence intended to raise the cost of aggression and prevent conflict.
The analyst said three countries bring complementary strengths to the arrangement: Pakistan’s military experience and expertise in managing escalation, Saudi Arabia’s economic strength and regional influence, and Türkiye’s advanced defense technology and industrial capabilities. Sharif arrived on Thursday for a three-day visit accompanied by a high-level delegation that includes Army Chief Field Marshal Asim Munir. Erdoğan traveled to Saudi Arabia on Friday. In addition to discussing ways to help defuse tensions between the United States and Iran, the three leaders were expected to explore expanding trade, economic ties and broader security cooperation, officials said. Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry said that while Sharif’s visit took place against the backdrop of heightened tensions in the Gulf, it extends beyond the immediate crisis and is aimed at strengthening bilateral relations and boosting coordination on regional and international issues. Pakistani officials said the pact meant that any attack against one of the parties to the agreement was an attack on all, which would prompt joint defensive action.
The three countries have been the subject of months of speculation about a possible strategic alliance.
Pakistan has sought to mediate efforts to end the U.S.-Iran war, while Türkiye has played a diplomatic role in negotiations aimed at ending the war in Gaza. Saudi Arabia and Pakistan had already announced a joint defense pact in 2025, a move that drew attention because Pakistan is the Muslim world’s only nuclear-equipped state.
The opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) has referred Ilkay Çiçek, the mayor of the western town of Menderes in the province of Izmir, to its disciplinary board, seeking his expulsion from the party. The party’s secretary-general, Rıfat Turuntay Nalbantoğlu, said in a social media post that Çiçek was facing disciplinary action because “his conduct and attitude did not comply with the party’s principles.” Çiçek was detained on Tuesday as part of an investigation into alleged corruption at the municipality, but it was his WhatsApp correspondence with a girlfriend that made him even more notorious.
The WhatsApp correspondence shows Çiçek telling his girlfriend that he was “walking cash” after she asked why he kept sending her photos of banknotes. “I got paid for whatever I do,” he says in one message. Çiçek then goes on to say that he was receiving “bribes left and right” and would not be caught because it was all done through “those two idiots,” he told his girlfriend, referring to two alleged associates who controlled the flow of bribes to the municipality.
Other messages between Çiçek and his girlfriend include one in which he writes that he is “too h…” and would “f… even my driver and staff.” Çiçek initially claimed the messages were AI-generated when portions of the correspondence first surfaced a few months ago. He later changed his account and instead complained about the “leak” of his “private conversations.”
Along with corruption allegations, the CHP was mired in scandals involving the same mayors involved in illicit affairs, like Çiçek, a married man. Özkan Yalım, the CHP’s mayor in the western province of Uşak, was caught in a hotel room with a mistress in Ankara when police officers stormed the location to nab the mayor in an operation against widespread corruption at the municipality a few months ago. Yalım was also expelled from the CHP after the anti-corruption operation and his other extramarital affairs, including recruiting and putting his mistresses on the payroll at the municipality, were exposed.
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