Politics
Turkish Parliament marks 34th year since Khojaly killings
The Turkish Parliament on Wednesday hosted a commemoration marking the 34th anniversary of the killings in Khojaly, with officials calling for remembrance and warning against future atrocities.
The event, titled the “Khojaly Genocide Commemoration Program,” was organized at the Turkish Grand National Assembly (TBMM) by the Türkiye-Azerbaijan Friendship, Cooperation and Solidarity Foundation (TADIV) and the Azerbaijani Embassy in Ankara. A photo exhibition accompanied the ceremony.
Among those attending were TADIV board chair Aygün Attar, Türkiye’s Chief Ombudsman Mehmet Akarca, head of the Türkiye-Azerbaijan parliamentary friendship group Şamil Ayrım, Republican People’s Party (CHP) lawmaker Gökhan Günaydın and Azerbaijan’s ambassador to Ankara, Rashad Mammadov.
Attar, who also chairs the Presidential Security and Foreign Policies Board, said the 1992 events in Khojaly continue to shape collective memory despite the territory’s return to Azerbaijani control following the recent Karabakh war. She said the commemoration seeks to prevent “new Khojaly, Srebrenica or Gaza” tragedies and urged the international community to reject violence based on ethnic or religious identity.
Mammadov said dozens were killed in Khojaly “for being Turkish and Muslim” and noted that despite hopes after World War II that such crimes would not recur, later atrocities in Rwanda, Cambodia and Srebrenica took place.
Referring to Azerbaijan’s military gains under President Ilham Aliyev, Mammadov said the country faces the challenge of sustaining peace in the South Caucasus while ensuring similar tragedies do not happen again. He added that pursuing peace is difficult for a nation that endured such suffering but described it as a necessity to prevent further bloodshed.
Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) Prime Minister Ünal Üstel said Thursday that any lasting settlement to the decades-long Cyprus dispute must begin with recognition of the Turkish Cypriots’ sovereign equality and equal international status, following U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres’ latest contacts on the island.
In a written statement issued after Guterres’ meeting with the leaders of the two sides, Üstel said the U.N. chief’s visit demonstrated that the political realities on the island “can no longer be ignored” and argued that future negotiations should be based on those realities rather than past frameworks.
He underlined that a fair, permanent and sustainable agreement could only be achieved after the Turkish Cypriots’ inherent rights, sovereign equality and equal international status are acknowledged. Without those principles, Ustel said, any new negotiating process would have little chance of success.
Reiterating the Turkish Cypriot leadership’s longstanding position that Cyprus is home to “two separate peoples, two separate democracies and two separate states,” he added that efforts to revive a federation-based settlement model had repeatedly failed and would not provide a lasting solution.
The prime minister also criticized the Greek Cypriot administration’s continued efforts to resume talks from where negotiations ended at Crans-Montana in 2017. He said the Turkish Cypriot side would not participate in negotiations that were unlikely to produce results, would consume time or would reopen issues affecting what he called the Turkish Cypriot people’s acquired rights.
“What’s important is not holding meetings, but establishing a realistic framework that guarantees the rights of the Turkish Cypriot people,” Üstel said.
He also noted Ankara’s role as a guarantor and the presence of Turkish troops on the island as indispensable for the security of Turkish Cypriots and for peace and stability in the Eastern Mediterranean, emphasizing those issues were not open for negotiation.
Despite the political disagreements, Üstel said his government would continue supporting practical cooperation aimed at improving daily life and promoting mutually beneficial initiatives between the two sides.
However, he said such cooperation would not come at the expense of the Turkish Cypriots’ statehood, sovereign equality or equal international status.
Israel’s aggression is exacting a heavy toll not only on Palestinians and Lebanese but also on people of different faiths across the region, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said, warning that the consequences of Israel’s violations are being felt far beyond its immediate victims.
“The price of Israel’s aggression is being paid not only by our Palestinian and Lebanese brothers and sisters, but by the entire region and people of different faiths,” he told a news conference after a Cabinet meeting in the capital Ankara.
“Israel is step by step occupying Palestinian lands by disregarding fundamental human rights in the region and trampling international law underfoot,” Erdoğan said.
The remarks came after an Israeli media report said Israeli forces had illegally seized land under Palestinian Authority administration in the occupied West Bank to connect two illegal Israeli settlements, further expanding settlement infrastructure on occupied Palestinian territory. Under the Oslo Accords, Area A falls under Palestinian civil and security control, while Israeli law prohibits Israeli settlers from entering the area. Palestinian rights groups and Israeli watchdogs have warned that the placement of the new settlements is intended to erode the framework established by the Oslo Accords.
Meanwhile, Erdoğan said that ending terrorism would lift a decades-long economic burden on Türkiye.
“When calculated in terms of investment, employment, tourism, agriculture, financing and security, the average annual cost of terrorism exceeds $50 billion,” Erdoğan said.
He said eliminating terrorism would unlock Türkiye’s economic potential across multiple sectors.
“Once the obstacle of terrorism is removed, Türkiye’s economy will begin writing a new story in every field,” he said.
Erdoğan also said the government’s “Terror-Free Türkiye” initiative would deliver both security and economic gains.
“When the Terror-Free Türkiye process reaches its goal, mothers will not only lay their heads on their pillows with peace of mind, but our country will also be freed from this heavy economic burden,” he said.
On Cyprus, Erdoğan reiterated that the issue centers on the Turkish Cypriot people’s sovereign equality and equal international status rather than a technical power-sharing dispute.
“No initiative that ignores the Turkish Cypriots’ sovereign equality, inherent rights and legitimate interests in the Eastern Mediterranean has any chance of succeeding,” he said.
Welcoming U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres’ recent visit to the island, Erdoğan said formulas that seek to reduce Turkish Cypriots to minority status have repeatedly failed and stressed that lasting peace can only be achieved through a fair, permanent and sustainable settlement.
Marking the anniversary of the 1974 Cyprus Peace Operation, Erdoğan said Türkiye exercised its guarantor rights to end the suffering of Turkish Cypriots and help establish peace and stability on the island. He added that Ankara would continue supporting the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus and would never leave Turkish Cypriots alone.
The Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) on Wednesday welcomed Türkiye’s statement following U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres’ visit to the island, reaffirming that any lasting settlement in Cyprus must be based on the sovereign equality and equal international status of the Turkish Cypriot people.
In a written statement, the TRNC Foreign Ministry said attempts to revive federation-based settlement models that have been tried for decades and repeatedly failed do not reflect the realities on the island.
The ministry stressed that the existence of two separate peoples and two sovereign states in Cyprus is the fundamental reality and warned that any process that ignores this fact has no chance of succeeding.
It also welcomed the statement issued by Türkiye’s Foreign Ministry following Guterres’ meetings on the island, describing Ankara’s position as consistent with the realities on the ground.
The ministry said a just, lasting and sustainable settlement could only be achieved through recognition of the Turkish Cypriot people’s inherent rights, sovereign equality and equal international status.
It added that no negotiation model or political process that falls short of these two fundamental principles would be acceptable.
The statement further said a realistic path forward for Cyprus can only be built on the island’s existing political and factual realities, respect for the will of both sides and an approach that promotes a new culture of cooperation.
Allegiances are shifting in Turkish politics as mayors and lawmakers switch sides to the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party). A prominent mayor is reportedly set to join the party soon, according to unconfirmed reports, while confirmed reports indicate that former Republican People’s Party (CHP) Chair Özgür Özel is recruiting more mayors to his New Party (YP).
There is no summer slowdown in Turkish politics, with Parliament still in session and the main opposition fighting for survival. Özel has so far secured his place in the crowded political landscape by quickly elevating his New Party to the position of the main opposition, surpassing the CHP, from which he split just one week ago. Yet, the YP will still depend on broader public appeal.
This may come in the form of mayors who have left the CHP for the YP. Özel previously announced that more than 200 mayors would join the party. More than a dozen mayors have announced their switch over the past two days, and more are expected to do so in the coming days. Among those leaving the CHP for the YP are the mayors of Denizli, Manisa (Özel’s hometown), Çanakkale, Artvin, Bilecik and Burdur, along with the mayors of several smaller districts.
However, Özel is most eager to recruit Mansur Yavaş, the mayor of the capital, Ankara. Yavaş has remained either vague or silent in his support for the YP, while Özel has repeatedly said he would welcome him. Yavaş is viewed as a figure who could help the party’s “social democrats” attract conservative voters. In a recent interview, Özel implied that any mayor who does not openly pledge loyalty to the new CHP administration while remaining in the party would sooner or later join the YP.
The YP is also expected to attract more CHP lawmakers in the coming days, potentially increasing its parliamentary group to around 100 members and further diminishing the CHP’s standing in Parliament. In addition, 264 former CHP lawmakers pledged their loyalty to the new party in a joint statement on Monday.
Nevertheless, the YP is not the only party welcoming new names. Media reports on Wednesday claimed that Cemil Tugay, the mayor of the CHP stronghold of Izmir, Türkiye’s third-largest city, would soon join the AK Party. Tugay is currently an independent after leaving the CHP amid the turmoil that brought former Chair Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu back to power after a court ruled that Özel had bought his way to the party’s chairmanship.
Nevşin Mengü, a journalist with close ties to the CHP, claimed that Tugay and three district mayors from Izmir would join the AK Party on Aug. 14, the anniversary of the party’s founding, which will be marked with major events in Ankara.
Elsewhere, four CHP district mayors in Istanbul, including one serving as acting mayor after replacing another CHP mayor, are also rumored to be preparing to join the AK Party. According to media reports published on Wednesday, the mayors of Tuzla, Şile and Eyüpsultan, along with the acting mayor of Çekmeköy, will join the party next month.
The AK Party has attracted many mayors from the CHP since the 2024 municipal elections, mostly those who fell out with the Özel administration. The last high-profile CHP figure to join the AK Party was Burcu Köksal of Afyon province in western Türkiye. The AK Party has also rejected several applications from CHP mayors seeking to join its ranks for various reasons.
Since the 2024 municipal elections, 76 mayors have joined the AK Party. Most came from the CHP and the New Welfare Party (YRP), which is ideologically closer to the AK Party than to the CHP. The AK Party has also welcomed nine mayors from the Good Party (IP), a right-wing party formed by lawmakers who split from the AK Party’s current ally, the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP). In addition, the AK Party has gained 14 opposition lawmakers since the 2023 general elections, most of them from the Good Party.
As it counts down to its 25th anniversary, the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party) has unveiled a logo featuring symbols of the achievements made during its years in government. The logo highlights both major development projects and historical heritage sites restored to their former glory.
“We are proud to have completed a quarter-century of our blessed journey, launched by our President and Chairman, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, with the declaration, ‘Nothing will ever be the same again,’ and of our path of service to our nation. Our slogan for this meaningful milestone, ‘A Quarter Century with Our Nation, Türkiye Is Ready for the Future,’ emphasizes that, as the AK Party, we have always drawn our strength from our nation and that, with the progress our country has made over the past 25 years, Türkiye is ready for the ‘Century of Türkiye’ and for the future,” the party said in a statement on Wednesday.
The party said the logo “brings together under a single visual identity the historic investments, projects and civilizational heritage we have delivered to our country throughout this blessed journey.”
The design incorporates special motifs, including both tangible symbols and more abstract, emotional elements.
“The emotional motifs in the design symbolize our party’s deep love for the nation and our people-centered approach to public service, while the floral and leaf motifs represent the prosperity, growth and an ever-renewing future nourished by our civilizational roots. The technology motifs reflect the digital transformation, domestic and national innovation championed by the AK Party, and Türkiye’s growing global influence in shaping the future,” the party said.
The statement added that the projects featured in the logo were selected to represent the sectors in which the party says it has delivered major accomplishments during its years in government.
“In the fields of defense, aviation and space, we included our national combat aircraft Kaan, our domestically developed Gökbey helicopter and the Türksat 6A satellite, the symbol of our independence in space. In transportation and infrastructure, the logo features Istanbul Airport, realized under the vision of our President; the Yavuz Sultan Selim Bridge, connecting the continents; the Northern Marmara Motorway, which transformed transportation; and our high-speed rail projects linking our cities.
“In energy and natural resources, the Fatih drilling ship, the symbol of our independent exploration efforts in the Blue Homeland, and the engineering marvel Yusufeli Dam stand out.
“In domestic industry and technology, the logo features Togg, which turned our nation’s half-century dream into reality. In urban development, housing and health care infrastructure, Housing Development Administration (TOKI) housing projects, through which millions of citizens have become homeowners, and Başakşehir Çam and Sakura City Hospital represent our understanding of the social state.
“In the fields of culture, civilization and religious architecture, the logo includes the Hagia Sophia Grand Mosque, our historic heritage reopened for worship after our nation broke its chains, and the Büyük Çamlıca Mosque, one of the new symbols of our civilization. Alongside all these projects and services, our glorious national flag occupies a distinguished place in the logo as the symbol of our national sovereignty and independence,” the AK Party said in the statement.
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz on Tuesday renewed his hostile rhetoric against Türkiye, issuing a series of pointed remarks on regional security, Syria and Iran.
During an interview with Israel’s Channel 14, Katz said Israel does not seek a military confrontation with Türkiye but argued that his country would defend itself against any threat. Referring to the Ottoman conquest of Constantinople, he said: “We are not the collapsing Christian empire. Jerusalem is not Constantinople, and we know how to defend ourselves.”
The Israeli minister also argued that Ankara is seeking greater influence in Syria and said Israel would not allow Syria to become a platform that could threaten its security.
Addressing the recent conflict with Iran, Katz claimed Israel had considered strikes on Iran’s energy infrastructure but said the United States opposed such attacks over concerns they could trigger broader regional escalation and disrupt global oil markets.
U.S. President Donald Trump recently described President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan as a “great leader” and a close friend, underscoring the strong relationship between the two leaders while dismissing concerns about potential tensions between Türkiye and Israel.
Speaking to reporters in the Oval Office, Trump was asked about the possibility of a confrontation between Türkiye and Israel amid growing regional tensions. The question came as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made a series of anti-Erdoğan remarks on social media, followed by Erdoğan’s warning against Israeli expansionism and violations.
The U.S. president said he had not heard of any such scenario and suggested he would personally intervene if necessary.
Relations between Türkiye and Israel have deteriorated sharply since the outbreak of the Gaza war, with Ankara strongly criticizing Israel’s military campaign and suspending bilateral trade. The two countries have also exchanged increasingly sharp rhetoric over regional security issues, including developments in Syria and the Eastern Mediterranean.
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