Francisco Franco’s four-decade rule left deep and lasting negative effects on Spanish society, which still continue to shape the country’s politics, as seen in a strengthened far right. Fifty years after the death of the dictator, experts are split over how to educate younger generations about the legacy of his ideology. Unlike other infamous 20th-century leaders such as Hitler and Mussolini, whose regimes collapsed in the flames of war, Franco’s dictatorship endured for around four decades. Spain remained under his rule from the end of the Spanish Civil War until 1975, when he died peacefully in his bed.

The Franco regime was among the most violent of modern times: between 115,000 and 130,000 people disappeared, 150,000 were assassinated, some 30,000 children were stolen from their parents, and thousands of political opponents were put in prison. According to the Platform for the Truth Commission, there are approximately 2,800 Franco-era mass graves around Spain.

Following Franco's death in 1975, King Juan Carlos and leading political figures initiated a process of transition to a constitutional democracy, and they enacted the 1977 Amnesty Law. This law pardoned political crimes committed during the dictatorship era, intending to secure a peaceful transition to democracy. Briefly, the Amnesty Law freed all political prisoners of the regime and allowed exiles to return to the country. However, it also granted legal impunity for human rights abuses and crimes committed by state officials and security forces during the Spanish Civil War and the Francoist dictatorship.

This blanket legal immunity granted to state officials and perpetrators of political violence committed during the dictatorship and Civil War is strongly criticized today by circles searching for justice and accountability for Franco-era crimes, as it still exists as a legal barrier preventing prosecution.

With the Amnesty Law, Spain entered a phase known as the "Pact of Forgetting," which is seen as the main step of Spain's political transition and is described as an informal agreement and collective intentional silence. In other words, the Pact of Forgetting was a kind of consensus between both the left and right parties in Spain to avoid confronting Francoism and prosecuting Francoist-era abuses to ensure a peaceful transition to democracy. This silence was initiated in an attempt to end division and establish peace between all social and political groups. It was accepted that Spain had a collective sense of denial and a lack of awareness about the past owing to the pact of forgetting. However, since the turn of the century, an increase in demands for justice and accountability has been observed among the descendants of victims and left-wing activists.

Facing the past is seen today as an ongoing, deeply polarized battle over the historical memory of the Franco dictatorship and the Spanish Civil War, as well as a struggle to recover the dignity and memory of the victims. Early initiatives were marked by the first exhumation in October 2000, conducted by journalist Emilio Silva, the grandson of one of the victims. This exhumation led the way for a series of mass grave exhumations of Civil War victims. Also, Emilio Silva’s articles on the political dimensions of historical memory were valued as foundational references and had a significant effect on raising awareness. By using the term “disappeared,” the articles brought the victims buried in ditches onto international human rights and transitional justice platforms.

Official recognition of victims and enacting laws

Since its inception in 2000, the movement for historical memory has had a huge social and political impact, leading to the establishment of many memory associations throughout Spain, and hundreds of mass graves have been exhumed. National and international political pressure from these associations has resulted in official acknowledgements of the victims and the adoption of national laws.

Legal initiatives to prosecute Franco’s crimes and repeal the amnesty law also secured the support of international human rights organizations and justice tribunals. Although these international channels have not yet been successful, they have contributed to giving the movement more visibility.

The Historical Memory Act of 2007, although considered an important step, delegated the responsibility and initiative of the exhumations to activist associations. This caused many ethical and logistical difficulties due to the lack of national protocols and coherent coordination. Today, the government only assumes a “facilitating” role, relying on the self-management of the associations.

The Democratic Memory Law of 2022 expanded state responsibility for locating mass graves, declared Francoist court sentences illegal, and aimed to clear remaining ambiguities. It also enshrines the right to investigate human rights violations committed during the Franco regime and the transition period, including torture and enforced disappearances. However, it fails to remove the longstanding legal and institutional barriers that have prevented victims from accessing truth, justice, and reparation.

The World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT) urges Spain to repeal the 1977 Amnesty Act and advises that acts of torture and enforced disappearance must never be subject to amnesties or statutes of limitation. It also asks Spain to honor its obligations regarding the victims' rights to truth, justice, and reparation, to amend Article 174 of the Penal Code to adequately define the crime of torture, and to establish the legal and institutional mechanisms to recognize and guarantee the right to reparation. Article 174 of the Spanish Penal Code defines and penalizes the crime of torture committed by public authorities or officials. It targets individuals who abuse their official position to inflict severe physical or mental suffering, impair cognitive abilities, or attack moral integrity.

At the start of 2025, Socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez declared that the year would be dedicated to remembering the impact of the dictatorship and celebrating Spain’s progress since the transition to democracy. In an opening ceremony at Madrid’s Reina Sofía Museum, he announced a nationwide program of around 100 commemorative events. However, the conservative Popular Party (PP) and far-right Vox denounced the initiative as a political stunt by Sánchez. Vox even called it a form of “necrophilia” which “divides Spaniards” by restricting “freedom of thought.”

Exhumations of Civil War victims and related legal and reconciliation initiatives require a separate, dedicated study, as they involve complex legal, ethical, and political dimensions distinct from ordinary historical research. Transitional justice work carried out through the Truth Commission set up under the Democratic Memory Council is expected to be effective enough to investigate all human rights violations from the Civil War and the Franco dictatorship. (NT/VK)

To trace the origins of this transformation, we must look to Turkish rap’s past in Germany, where it emerged not merely as part of the entertainment industry but as a struggle for existence.

In Germany in the late 1980s, the children of the Gastarbeiter generation were living in a limbo, caught between two cultures. Street gangs like the 36 Boys, formed by these young people who faced racism and exclusion in Germany, went beyond simply erecting barricades against Neo-Nazi attacks; they were also drawing their own cultural boundaries in defiance of the hegemony they faced in Germany. As artists like Boe B, Killa Hakan, and Cartel brought hip-hop’s rebellious spirit from the Bronx to Kreuzberg, rap evolved from a mere music genre into a form of resistance embodied in the diaspora’s anthems of rebellion. For the first generation of Turkish rappers, the microphone was the direct instrument of their existential struggle against assimilation and racism. Rap during this period was highly political; after all, simply existing as an immigrant on those streets was a political stance in and of itself.

This state of othering, rooted in immigration in Germany, underwent a sociological metamorphosis when it was transported to Turkey via the Berlin-Istanbul corridor in the early 2000s, transforming into class-based anger. Artists such as Ceza, Sagopa Kajmer, and Fuat skillfully translated the sense of victimization experienced in Germany into the socio-economic stagnation of Istanbul’s impoverished outlying neighborhoods. Culture had begun to serve not only as the voice of the expatriates but also as the voice of the city’s poor, who had been rendered invisible.

This phase marked the golden age—in qualitative terms—of Turkish rap, as young people deprived of economic resources and equal opportunities built their own cultural capital. Rather than through violence, these young people began to channel the anger building inside them by poring over dictionaries, making sociological observations, and blending literature with street slang.

“We come from the streets, and we tell the stories of the streets and the underground. Those rosy pictures shown on TV don’t reflect Turkey’s reality. Politicians turn a blind eye to our problems; they don’t hear our voices. We have no weapons; we only have our microphones and our words. With this microphone, we shout out our rebellion, our poverty, and how the system crushes people. Rap is the voice of the silenced and the ignored. Young people are venting the immense anger and frustration building up inside them—not through violence, but through words and music.” (Ceza – Crossing the Bridge, 2005) – Director: Fatih Akın)

The early 2000s marked a period when computers and home microphones became widespread, making production tools more affordable. Bedroom studios and internet forums created “autonomous zones” aimed at breaking the monopolies in the music industry. The pseudo-libertarian atmosphere felt in the country from the mid-2000s through 2013 led to different subcultures coming into contact with one another. Underground rap broke out of its ghetto and seeped into the gaps left by popular culture. Independent collectives established in many cities, along with underground albums and low-cost concerts, demonstrated that fully independent production and distribution were possible without relying on the capitalist industry.

As is the fate of any subculture that reaches a wide audience, Turkish rap also came onto the radar of the capitalist media industry once it gained popularity. In the second half of the 2010s, as digital platforms swallowed up physical media, artists rediscovered by the mainstream were subjected to a process of cultural gentrification. The sharp edges of the culture were almost entirely smoothed out in the pursuit of market share.

Independent rappers who rapidly attained capital, fame, and massive incomes quickly became apolitical to avoid losing these comfort zones and to steer clear of backlash from the shifting, harsh political climate. Lyrics that previous generations used to voice social injustices have given way to 808 basslines, pop/trap formats, luxury cars, and a hollowed-out mafia romanticism. The street has ceased to be a lived reality and has transformed into a synthetic image seen only in music videos.

The concept of “Battle Rap,” which has grown unchecked within rap culture and is used solely for quick social media engagement, has stripped musical production of its substance. Shows built entirely around “dissing” have completely overshadowed the literary depth and musical quality of the songs. The art of writing good lyrics and crafting compositions has been replaced by the pursuit of insulting one’s opponent and capitalizing on the energy of a hooligan-like crowd.

Amid this apolitical lethargy, one exceptional example that integrated into the mainstream while delivering political and social criticism through a modern trap/reggae sound was Ezhel’s album *Müptezhel*. The album, which combined class inequality, poverty, and a lack of future prospects with high-quality production, sparked a massive awakening. However, the state apparatus’s response to this dissenting reflex was ruthless. The legal proceedings, imprisonment, lynch campaigns, and life in exile that Ezhel was subjected to served as a clear ultimatum from cultural censors to the rap community. While this case institutionalized fear and self-censorship, the new generation of rap turned turning a blind eye to social issues into an industry standard.

Today, Turkish rap has completely lost its cultural influence, falling prey to bot streams, copycat songs, and a network of superficial connections. Looking at the works dominating the current market, it is evident that the culture reflecting the socio-cultural atmosphere has been replaced by caricatured mafia-style pretensions, misogyny, and hollowed-out identities. The vast majority of songs are confined to displays of synthetic wealth, meaningless choruses, and plastic gang simulations that normalize crime. As the quality of music and lyrics is sacrificed to the anxiety of going viral in 15 seconds, rap has ceased to be the language of rebellion and has transformed into a corrupt showcase of capitalist consumption.

So, is it possible to escape this aesthetic abyss?

We can look for the answer in America’s own historical cycle. Just as Turkish rap was born in Kreuzberg, American rap also took root in the 1980s and 1990s as a political line of resistance in the hands of Black poets. Figures like Grandmaster Flash, Public Enemy, Tupac, and N.W.A. used music as a tool of struggle against racism and systemic oppression. However, in the 2000s, this culture succumbed to the industry—just as is happening in Turkey today. During this era, known as the “Bling Era,” major corporations stripped rap of its political edge, transforming it into a plastic product based on luxury consumption, chunky necklaces, and misogyny.

Yet American rap managed to rise from the brink of death. In the late 2010s and 2020s, visionary lyricists like Kendrick Lamar, J. Cole, and Tyler, the Creator established themselves as influential figures in the industry not only through their literary talent but also through the organic business structures they built (TDE, Dreamville, etc.). Thanks to these structures, which freed production from exploitative corporate monopolies, profound sociological observations conquered the mainstream from within. The pinnacle of this awakening was Kendrick Lamar’s winning of the Pulitzer Prize for his album *DAMN.* Awarded for the first time in history to an artist outside the realms of jazz or classical music, this prize was the most concrete proof that the new generation could restore the power rooted in their heritage to American rap music.

The salvation of Turkish rap also lies in bold, intellectual steps that leverage digital possibilities. The path to lasting success in this poisoned industry lies in the emergence of strong lyricists, artists uniting by establishing independent structures, and reinterpreting the first existential rebellion in Kreuzberg as a cultural rebellion in today’s complex world. Because Turkish rap is not a sterile entertainment space or a commercial project; it is a survival reflex born out of oppression and marginalization. (ECS/VK)

It was a happy place and it wasn’t lost on me that it led to the graveyard which was also a happy place, it took death very well. The people were left alone, Mehmet “The Soda Seller” and the self-declared “Genius” could just grow wild, never cut or tidied up, they stayed the same as when they were first laid, it was comforting. I planned to cut through and walk-up hill to the bench but decided to go up the road then cut through, I was a mixed bag of physical illnesses.

When all is lost, I take comfort in the dead here. A certain butterfly always flutters around Vasfiye’s grave, as it did today. A raven perched proudly on Osman’s tomb and the sweet hum of insects and birds blending with roses and lavender made me forget the charred ground or my life. Slowly, however, the dark tree fella crept behind my eyes, blocking the sunlight, its branches around my throat. Like a recovering heroin addict, I tried to erase it from my mind. “Not here.” Arrests, commissions, dark words, hopeless faces, lying eyes that was death, this is life. There were birds sounds I didn’t recognise, an old man bowed extremely low to greet me. The grave digger waved, he knew me. 

I would have to take shelter; our beach in the morning sitting on the sand, the waves meditating them away and of course they will pass my way, seagull, raven butterfly and YOU. 

Documentary photographer Ali Öz has borne witness to Turkey’s social history throughout a career spanning more than 45 years. His camera has captured many historic moments, from wars and strikes to street protests, stories of poverty, forced migration and the struggle of families searching for missing relatives.

Öz’s book “Tarlabaşı – The Lost City,” which he produced after spending nearly 10 years immersed in the neighborhood’s streets, has returned in a revised edition after its first printing in 2013. 

The book, now part of the collection of the Library of Alexandria, one of the world’s prestigious archives, stands out as an important record of a neighborhood transformed by urban redevelopment and the lives of the people who called it home.

With some 50,000 photographs documenting the social history of an era, Öz spoke to bianet about his approach to photography, Tarlabaşı’s transformation and his new projects.

How did “Tarlabaşı – The Lost City” emerge?

We published the first edition about 10 years ago. We printed 2,000 copies rather than 1,000, and they sold out very quickly. I would say it became one of the fastest-selling books in the history of photography. I even went to the publishing house and bought the remaining, aging copies in storage with my own money. I wanted to keep some for myself, to preserve them. For years, people asked me, “When will the book be reprinted?” But I didn’t know whether that would ever be possible.

Then something very important happened: the Library of Alexandria wanted to acquire the book. The publisher had no copies left, so they contacted me. At the time, the book cost 40 liras. I was embarrassed to tell them the price, but I did. They were surprised and said, “How can you quote that price for a book that is no longer available?” They ended up buying it for a price they determined themselves. The important point is this: The book entered the collection of one of the world’s major libraries, yet many libraries in Turkey don’t have a copy. That says something about Turkey’s approach to preserving its cultural memory.

'Tarlabaşı was more than just a neighborhood to me'

How did you first come to Tarlabaşı?

When I was starting out in the profession, I couldn’t find a place to live in İstanbul, so I rented a home in Tarlabaşı. I lived there for about six months between 1983 and 1985. It had a distinctive atmosphere and was a very powerful place for photography. Later, journalism, university life and the relentless pace of news work took me elsewhere, but somehow I always found my way back.

I was there again during the demolitions for Tarlabaşı Boulevard. One man had poured gasoline over himself to stop his home from being demolished. I was the only journalist who went up to him, and I persuaded him not to do it. He was later given a home elsewhere. Tarlabaşı was abandoned to its fate at the time, despite its extraordinary architectural character. As the poet Sennur Sezer put it, “It was Venice without the water.” It was an incredibly valuable place.

This book isn’t simply an album of photographs. It bears witness to a lost neighborhood, the people who lived there, and their hopes and suffering. I spent nearly 10 years walking the streets of Tarlabaşı. I was there from the first light of morning until the darkest hours of the night.

I witnessed weddings and funerals. I watched children play and felt the silence of demolished homes. I took around 50,000 photographs. My aim was to leave a small record for history. Because I knew that one day, much of these streets would no longer exist.

'The true value of photography lies in preserving memory'

Can you describe what photography means to you in a single sentence?

I never chased photographs, I chased people. Because wherever there are people, there is joy, pain, injustice and hope... For 45 years, I have always pointed my lens at people. To me, photography was about conscience before aesthetics, and bearing witness before reporting the news.

Looking back today, what makes me happiest is that the photographs I took have become part of the memory of an era. Because the true value of photography lies in its ability to bear witness to people and to its time.

How do you view the urban transformation that began in 2010?

I don’t call it gentrification, I call it “degeneration.” Because it was a process that began by displacing the people who lived there and buying their homes for very little. People began disappearing overnight. They moved to Arnavutköy, Hacıahmet... Yet Tarlabaşı was an extremely cosmopolitan neighborhood. Roma, Kurds, the legacy of the Greeks, and later Syrians... Many different groups lived side by side.

Poor people built lives for themselves there. They made rice dishes, sold stuffed mussels and corn. Women in particular worked under extremely difficult conditions. There were women who spent days preparing stuffed mussels in damp homes. I felt that all of this needed to be documented.

What did you set out to do when you began photographing Tarlabaşı?

I wanted to document it. But it wasn’t only about taking photographs. I wanted these people’s voices to be heard. Because a photograph is more than an image, there is a life behind it. There is a person’s story. I wanted to make what these people were going through visible.

I’ve long been a journalist without a regular job at a newspaper. I tried to tell these stories through social media.

Why did you choose to remain outside established journalism organizations?

It wasn’t really a choice. It was partly a result of the circumstances. There were no jobs. And I’ve always been something of a nonconformist. Even when I was employed, no one could censor me. If they didn’t assign me to a story, I would go on my own.

When there was a firedamp explosion in Zonguldak, I called my news editor and said, “I want to go.” He told me, “Don’t go, a team has already been sent.” But this was the biggest story in Turkey. So I went to Zonguldak without stopping by the newspaper and without taking any money. I worked there for days. Journalism, to me, was never about waiting behind a desk. It was about going where life was happening.

Has this always been your approach to journalism?

Yes, it has been this way since the early years of my career. When I was working at Nokta magazine, I wanted to go to the Kırkpınar oil wrestling festival. They told me, “There’s no need.” So I went on my own over the weekend, brought back the photographs, and the work won an award. Because sometimes a journalist’s job is not to do what they are told, but to recognize what needs to be done.

Later, I worked at many outlets, including Güneş, Milliyet, Aktüel, Cumhuriyet, Tempo and NTV. But I was never someone who simply carried out the assignments I was given.

Were your photographs of the Saturday Mothers also part of this approach?

Absolutely. When I was working at Tempo, I photographed the Saturday Mothers. Sometimes they didn’t want me to cover them, but I went anyway. Then, because of the power of the photographs, they had no choice but to publish them. One day, the editor-in-chief said, “I’m not going to publish these women,” but that week they ran two full pages. That is where the power of photography comes through.

On one side were images of mothers close to the government, on the other were the Saturday Mothers... When the two photographs were placed side by side, they revealed the reality of an era. Sometimes a photograph is more powerful than a sentence.

'I have been documented Turkey’s political history for 45 years'

Throughout your career, you have photographed wars, social upheavals, strikes and resistance movements. How do you see that body of work looking back?

You have to look at it this way: There are probably very few examples like it anywhere in the world. For 45 years, I have been making a documentary of the political history of this country. I was there during the Gezi protests, the TEKEL workers’ resistance, May Day rallies, strikes and street protests.

In 2003, when I was unemployed, I traveled to the region with human shields during the Iraq War. During the debate over the Mar 1 motion, people carried placards bearing my photographs. My photographs were used during marches by villagers from Bergama, in human rights campaigns and during social protests. What I was really trying to do was preserve the memory of an era.

What kept you going for so long?

People. I never chased photographs, I chased people. Because wherever there are people, there is life, joy, pain, injustice and hope. For me, photography is about conscience before aesthetics. It is about bearing witness before it becomes news.

'My way of expressing myself'

How would you describe your relationship with photography?

Photography means living to me. I was never very talkative, and I found it difficult to express myself. Even my mother would say, “Son, I wish you’d talk a little.” Photography became my lifeline. It became the medium through which I could best express myself.

I started while studying at Ankara University’s School of Political Sciences, School of Press and Broadcasting. I also held my first photography exhibition during that period. Later, I became involved in social and political life. Trade unions, grassroots organizing in villages, social struggles... They changed the way I saw the world. For me, photography was a straightforward and honest language of expression.

'Today, they are making photographs lie'

How do you view the impact of artificial intelligence on photography?

I am deeply concerned. Because photography’s fundamental power comes from its grounding in reality. But today, they are making photographs lie. Someone’s photograph can be taken and placed into a scene that never happened, leaving that person struggling to prove it is fake. That is extremely dangerous.

People are using artificial intelligence to write novels and poetry. But there is a vast difference between the virtual world and real life. The warmth of a person on the street, the expression on their face, the moment they are living through, none of that can be replicated.

'I never became alienated from my class'

How do you position yourself in relation to the people you photograph?

I never became alienated from my class. I never looked down on the people I photographed. In Tarlabaşı, I lived among them and shared their experiences. I shared in their pain and their joy. There were times when I went home, put my head on the pillow and cried.

The same was true with the Saturday Mothers. I stood with the people there. It means a great deal to me that my photographs are part of the stories of Emine Ocak and Berfo Ana. Because I didn’t want simply to photograph people. I wanted to bear witness to their lives.

'My new dream is to make a book documenting Turkey’s political history'

What are you planning to work on next?

First, I want to produce a new book of black-and-white photographs of Turkey in the 1980s. There is a very important archive that has been acquired by the SALT Research collection. It will be a body of work portraying Turkey during that period.

But my biggest dream is to put together a book called “A Political Documentary of Turkey.” We are talking about an archive spanning 45 years. Democracy, human rights, labor movements, social struggles... It is all there. I want this archive to find a permanent home. Because I no longer want to carry this burden alone. I want an institution, a municipality or an archive to take responsibility for preserving this collective memory. (EMK/NÖ/VK)

Authorities are considering the transfer of currently enrolled students to public schools, the newspaper reported. Inspectors also requested information about Armenian citizens who previously attended Armenian school.

The inspections are not expected to be limited to Armenian schools as Greek and Jewish schools are also reportedly within the scope of the audits, Agos said.

Historic İstanbul Greek school sees no new enrollments this year

26 September 2025

Armenians, Greeks and Jews are Turkey's officially recognized minority groups under the 1923 Treaty of Lausanne. Minority schools established under the treaty serve citizens of Turkey belonging to those communities.

A regulation issued by the National Education Ministry on Mar 20, 2012 allowed foreign nationals to attend private schools as “guest students." These students are not eligible for diplomas but receive documents listing the courses they completed when they leave school.

Armenian schools have admitted children from Armenia under this arrangement for over 14 years.

Representatives of Armenian foundations and school administrators will discuss the issue, Agos said. Armenian Patriarch of Turkey Sahak Maşalyan is also aware of the developments.

Schools of Minorities Opened along with Troubles

28 September 2015

(NÖ/VK)

The regime in Turkey

They neither hesitate nor feel embarrassed to portray the “party-affiliated presidential system of government,” which has been in place for more than eight years, as though it were a new regime in terms of its structure and operation. They act as if this regime’s methods and instruments of governance had not been in use for years and they were encountering them for the first time. The authorization provided for in the bill is, of course, a negative development for democracy. But it is not a new practice unique to this text. Is it possible to deny that for eight years the country has been governed through presidential decrees that take effect with the signature of a single person, on whatever date that person chooses, and can be repealed whenever that person wishes, while the Turkish Grand National Assembly (TBMM) has been left with less initiative on many issues than under the previous regime? Do they not know that even in areas where the TBMM retains its initiative, all that happens is that hands go up and down because of the structural characteristics of the ruling party? I don’t think so! Then why do they take this position? It is quite difficult to give a single answer...

The agreement was also approved by parliament

The “Framework Bill,” adopted by the TBMM General Assembly on Aug 10, 2026, is essentially an agreement between the parties to an armed conflict, similar to examples seen in conflict resolution processes around the world. As previously discussed in this column, steps related to “democratization” are not, and should not be sought, primarily within an agreement of this kind, which is designed to ensure that the guns fall silent/the right to life/the right not to be killed. Their absence should not be regarded as a specific, deliberate omission. Still less can such a step be expected from a government that has become dependent on two instruments for generating social consent that are also consuming the government itself. “Democratization” is not something a government with the characteristics of the current one would or could implement, nor is it a step it could take. When everyone knows that it has no instrument for securing consent left other than different forms of “violence,” which it has to intensify with each passing day, and the instrumentalization of the law, it is unrealistic to expect it to take steps toward democratization. Let us not deceive ourselves.

What created and made today possible

So who is the law/agreement currently on the agenda primarily for? It is worth stating this in all sincerity, without hesitation or apprehension. This law is for the “Peace and Democratic Society Group,” which destroyed its weapons at a ceremony on Jul 11, 2025, in the Casane Cave area of Dukan, a town in Sulaymaniyah province in the Kurdistan Regional Government of Iraq, and announced the reasons for doing so to the world in a written statement, as well as for those who share and support the views expressed in that statement but were unable to be there. Of course, it is also for the thousands of prisoners currently held in prisons in Turkey who embrace this text and “could put their signatures to it,” as well as the tens of thousands of political exiles forced to live abroad. To briefly recall the text: “Freedom fighters who joined the PKK at different times in order to fight against attacks aimed at denying and destroying the Kurdish existence, took up arms and struggled in different regions (...) We are voluntarily destroying our weapons before you in order to pursue our struggle for freedom, democracy and socialism through democratic politics and the law, and on the basis of the enactment of democratic integration laws.”

In the narrow sense, the law in question consists simply of an agreement based on such a demand. At this stage, although this is not sufficient, what matters should be whether the “right not to be killed” demanded by the parties to the conflict can be secured through an agreement/law as a result of the negotiations. The parties say they have reached an agreement! They say, “It has shortcomings, but it can be considered sufficient for a start.” We hope the implementation phase of the law will be completed in full and as quickly as possible without any major problems.

As stated in the text, ending “attacks aimed at denying and destroying the Kurdish existence,” regarded as an outcome achieved under present-day conditions, is the result of a long-running struggle for which a heavy price has been paid. The political and social accumulation generated by that struggle first enabled the Kurdish people to embrace and defend their national existence. It was further strengthened by the relationships it developed and the alliances it forged across Turkey and around the world. The historical accumulation and richness behind being at the negotiating table today stands as an undeniable source of strength and confidence. By its very nature, this also requires a similar degree of responsibility regarding the decisions to be made and agreed upon at the table.

For a political solution to the Kurdish issue

Besides being an agreement, this law will also serve as the first step in the legal sphere during this period toward a “political solution to the Kurdish issue.” The Kurdish question and its resolution had already been brought under the roof of the TBMM through the commission’s work. With this stage, it will also constitute a “first” in terms of the legislature’s function. However, neither the content of this law nor the current structure of the TBMM is sufficient for a political solution to the Kurdish question or for “normalization,” known as the final stage of conflict resolution processes. For this reason, a joint struggle is also needed to remove, one by one, the obstacles to the democratization of the republic and to establish a “new” life and order based on equal citizenship.

Like all left-wing, socialist and democratic parties and organizations, the Peoples’ Equality and Democracy (DEM) Party, pro-Kurdish, is in favor of peace. At the same time, unlike the others, it is a party that, despite the process’s shortcomings, by its very nature has a place and role in advancing it, and indeed must play that role. Nevertheless, despite some periods of stagnation, it has managed to remain an integral component of the social opposition in the struggle for social equality, freedoms, rights and the rule of law. It has also played important roles in the opposition’s concrete historical gains. Regardless of the stage that has been reached, even the slightest hesitation in this regard would increase both the risk of the process being derailed, as in previous years, and the risk of the DEM Party becoming isolated, shrinked and diminished. The other components of the opposition have important roles to play in this regard, just as the DEM Party does.

Joint struggle for a solution

To achieve a joint struggle, there is a need for an inclusive, constructive, persistent and always “realistic” approach within a framework that takes the existing situation into account. At every stage, there must be an ability to empathize and, without becoming confined to personal or institutional calculations, efforts must be made above all to create the conditions for always taking steps together that will also enable a political solution to the Kurdish issue, and those conditions must actually be created. Let us not forget that once equal citizenship is secured, there is the possibility that a major wall dividing the class, including through ethnic identities and other sub-identities, and standing “in the way of becoming a class for itself,” will come down. If this happens, it has the potential to create opportunities that could also pave the way for class struggle.

Those in Turkey who are wholly and/or on certain issues dissatisfied with the existing situation and do not consent to it should, without any ifs or buts, be able to decide first and foremost on unity in action, all together, side by side, with concrete demands and an objective plan and program. This unity in action must also be embraced by broad sections of society so that the demands are taken into consideration. Alternatively, the government can be defeated at the ballot box through an alliance similar to the “urban consensus,” which was implemented in the 2024 local elections following the DEM Party’s proposal to the Republican People’s Party (CHP), main opposition, and dealt the Justice and Development Party (AKP), ruling party, and Nationalist Movement Party (MHP), government ally, their biggest defeat of the past decade. Yet experience shows us that even this is not enough today. Preparations must also be made for how the gains achieved will and should be defended.

Here, let us leave the final word to our pioneers of the 1970s: “There is no liberation alone, either all of us together or none of us.” (OH/VC/VK)

Kaboğlu argued that it was more of an amnesty legislation than a legal framework outlining the peace process:

"What has been enacted here is an amnesty. It is not a general amnesty, but technically speaking, it is an amnesty aimed at a specific category. So technically it is already an amnesty, but a discriminatory one. It is discriminatory in terms of the category of offenses and discriminatory in terms of time. It is an undeclared, de facto amnesty."

"I cannot describe this as a law. What we have is a political intention dressed up as legislation. I am trying to use measured language because I do not want to discredit or dismiss the will that emerged from a broad consensus."

The law provides the first legal basis for the Kurdish peace initiative launched in Oct 2024. It allows proceedings and ongoing cases involving the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) to be suspended for five to 10 years, provided the group is confirmed to have laid down its arms. Killings committed as part of the PKK's activities and people sentenced to life imprisonment before 2005 are excluded from the law.

Parliament passes bill suspending sentences for PKK members

11 August 2026

'All sides have agreed on the term "terrorism"'

Kaboğlu pointed out that the law effectively establishes the PKK as a "terrorist" group:

"Is the PKK a terrorist organization or not? This law has now formally established that it is. From now on, no one will use, or be able to use, different terms. Were they guerrillas, militia members, militants? There is no need for that anymore because all sides have reached agreement on the concept and the word 'terrorism,' and they have now enshrined that in law."

Verification procedures 'problematic'

Kaboğlu criticized the requirement that the verification mechanism be tied to the National Security Council (MGK), saying the arrangement was technically problematic.

"The National Security Council is being granted a status beyond its constitutional position, with the law saying that it will make a decision. But the National Security Council does not make decisions. It makes recommendations to the president. In the past, it made recommendations to the government; today, it makes recommendations to the president. There are technical problems of this kind, serious problems."

Does the law cover the Academics for Peace?

Kaboğlu said the framework law does not cover the academics who signed a "Peace Declaration" in 2016 calling for an end to the urban conflict going on in the country's Kurdish regions at the time. Hundreds of academics stood trial on "terror propaganda" charges and lost their positions after the declaration was released.

"The issue concerning the Academics for Peace is very clear, very straightforward and very simple. A faculty member expresses support for a prepared statement, a peace petition, 10 years ago. There is not even a signature anywhere, just an expression of consent. And the consequences do not stop with that person being dismissed from the university. Their entire family life and the rest of their life are cast into darkness.

"We were invited to parliament last year, but I did not go. They spoke of a 'terror-free Turkey,' but they did not say, 'Turkey should be governed by the rule of law.' If politicians who want a country free of terrorism also want a Turkey governed by law, only then can the goal of a terror-free Turkey succeed. But they never once spoke of the law."

A call for justice and accountability for the Academics for Peace

8 January 2026

Demirtaş's imprisonment

Regarding Kurdish political leader Selahattin Demirtaş, who has been imprisoned since 2016, Kaboğlu said he would not be in prison if the judgments of the European Court of Human Rights had been implemented.

"So asking whether Demirtaş is covered by this law could cast doubt on the legitimacy of his case. In other words, putting Demirtaş in the same category could lead us astray. Your next question would then be: What about Osman Kavala? The rulings concerning Osman Kavala, Can Atalay and Tayfun Kahraman are very clear examples. There are Constitutional Court rulings, and there are also European Court of Human Rights judgments.

"No legislative or constitutional amendment was needed in any of these cases. Simply enforcing the existing laws and the constitution would have been enough. But no such political will emerged. That is why you can talk about a terror-free Turkey, but you cannot talk about a Turkey governed by the rule of law."

Bahçeli calls for release of Öcalan, Demirtaş as ‘Kurdish peace law’ heads to parliament

5 August 2026

(FY/EB/VK)

The miners, employed by Eti Gümüş silver company and Doruk Madencilik mining company, both owned by Yıldızlar SSS Holding, had been protesting in Ankara for four days. They said they would remain until all outstanding payments were made.

Those detained included Independent Mine Workers Union (Bağımsız Maden-İş) Chair Gökay Çakır and organizing specialist Başaran Aksu. Two workers who became ill during the police intervention were taken to a hospital by ambulance.

Protests began in April

The dispute dates back to April, when Doruk Madencilik miners traveled from Eskişehir to Ankara on foot over months of unpaid wages and other receivables. They ended weeks of protests after the Labor and Social Security Ministry mediated a deal between the union and the company.

The ministry had said payment of the workers’ claims had been secured under an agreed timetable.

The miners resumed protests on June 1, claiming that the company had not fulfilled its end of the deal. After four days, the union announced that all outstanding payments had been made and said the action had ended in "victory."

Police detain union leaders as miners' protest continue in Ankara

27 April 2026

Workers began protesting again on Aug 9, this time joined by employees of Eti Gümüş.

According to Bağımsız Maden-İş, only about 50 of 176 workers at Eti Gümüş in Elazığ received part of their unpaid wages. The union said severance, notice compensation and payments related to retirement remained outstanding.

Doruk Madencilik workers were also still awaiting severance and notice compensation, wages for periods of mandatory unpaid leave and, in some cases, compensation related to union activity, according to the union.

The workers then began a sit-in outside the Energy and Natural Resources Ministry.

Miners end hunger strike in Ankara after ministries step in as guarantors

29 April 2026

Negotiations with holding representatives

On the fourth day of the protest, four workers left the ministry area to meet Yıldızlar SSS Holding representatives. Union officials said the meeting produced no concrete result.

Aksu said the holding had initially denied owing the workers money before making limited payments, adding that the union had requested a meeting with ministry officials for four days without receiving a response.

"We are not leaving because we do not want to have to come here again," Aksu said. "The ministry must take the initiative."

Çakır said payments made so far covered only part of what workers were owed.

"If a worker is owed 100,000 liras, they paid 25,000 liras," he said. "The boss now says, 'We paid the money.' If you paid the money, we would leave. As a union, we will stay here until not even one lira owed to one worker remains unpaid."

Police intervened after union officials said they would not leave the ministry entrance until the outstanding claims were paid. Officers moved journalists away from the protest area and prevented them from filming the intervention.

Police then detained several miners, including Çakır and Aksu. (AEK/VK)

Under the amendment, the option of retiring through a tax reduction granted on the basis of disability was abolished. Instead, eligibility is determined through assessments of loss of working capacity conducted by the Social Security Institution (SGK).

The law provides for the continued payment of pensions granted under the tax reduction scheme before Jan 15, 2025. However, some disabled people who had already retired say their pensions were terminated following reassessments carried out after follow-up medical examinations.

Those whose retirement applications were finalized after the new rules entered into force say the eligibility requirements they believed applied to them under the previous system were changed, resulting in a loss of rights.

The Disabled Retirement Solidarity Association (EMED) says it has pursued legal action over the consequences of the amendment and has also brought the issue before international mechanisms.

Despite widespread poverty and unemployment, Turkey's disabled community neglected in 2025 budget

3 November 2024

‘We are forced to work despite serious illnesses’

EMED Chair Nazlı Pınar Tetik is among those affected by the law, along with other members of the group. Currently undergoing cancer treatment, Tetik learned by text message that her pension had been terminated.

She described the loss of rights caused by the law as “the largest seizure of social rights in the history of the republic.”

Teik said that following the change, the rejection rate by the Social Security Institution (SGK) and the High Health Council had reached 98 percent, while 75 percent of those affected had either already qualified for retirement or were in their final year before becoming eligible.

Tetik said that after domestic legal remedies reached a dead end, they brought the issue before the United Nations. She said the UN had begun reviewing the case on the grounds that acquired rights cannot be revoked retroactively. Their application to the Constitutional Court, meanwhile, has been pending for 18 months.

Tetik said the ministry and the SGK had not shared data and had not responded to requests for meetings. She noted that the existing retirement right for people insured before 2008 would in any case have expired in 2028.

She criticized the removal of retirement rights from disabled people who had only one or two years left before becoming eligible:

“If our health allowed it, we would already be working. But we are being forced to work despite our serious illnesses.”

'I lost it by two days'

Ahmet, who has type 1 diabetes, lost his retirement entitlement because of a two-day difference in the application process.

Ahmet was assessed as having a 44 percent disability in 2019 and received a permanent disability rating of 71 percent in 2024 after his condition worsened. The Ankara Tax Office also approved his tax reduction certificate. However, the document reached the SGK on Jan 17, 2025. Law No. 7538 had entered into force two days earlier, on Jan 15.

Ahmet said the SGK would not accept his application before receiving the document. Once it arrived, he was told that he could no longer retire because of the new rules. Reports from health institutions to which he was referred, as well as his appeals, did not change the outcome.

“The law came into effect on the 15th, and the document arrived on the 17th. They made me lose it by two days,” he said, adding that the delay was not his responsibility.

Ahmet was receiving treatment for an eye condition caused by Type 1 diabetes and had lost sensation in his feet and took medication regularly. Despite his permanent disability report, his loss of working capacity was not considered sufficient to qualify for retirement.

He had been forced to continue working because he could not retire. “I’m trying to keep my life going by working. Because if I don’t work today, I go hungry tomorrow," said Ahmet.

Pensioner poverty in Turkey: 9 out of 10 say need to work to stay afloat

12 May 2026

Cancer patient’s pension terminated after retirement

Feridun Sağlam, another person affected by the change, is a cancer patient who had already retired before his pension was later terminated.

Diagnosed with cancer in 2024, Sağlam said he underwent surgery and chemotherapy and retired under the tax reduction scheme with an 84 percent disability rating. In 2025, the SGK referred him for a follow-up medical examination. His disability rating was reduced to 68 percent and his pension was terminated.

Sağlam said part of his lung had been removed because of cancer, that he developed osteoporosis and microfractures following chemotherapy, underwent knee surgery and uses an oxygen machine at night. Despite this, he said he was told that he had “no loss of working capacity.”

Sağlam said that after his pension was cut off, his unemployment benefits also ended. With no income, he said he was struggling to pay his General Health Insurance (GSS) premiums and had applied for a green card so he could continue accessing health care.

“We can’t work. And when we can’t work, there’s no money... We don’t have time to wait,” Sağlam said, adding that although he was unable to work, he had no income to support himself.

Retirement application rejected despite workplace accident

Another person affected, Cuma, who did not want his surname published, said he had waited for years to retire after a workplace accident, only to have his application rejected under the new rules.

Cuma said he lost his right hand in a workplace accident on Dec 12, 2014, while working as an operator of paving stone and interlocking brick machinery at a factory in Antep. Despite surgeries and treatment, he was left unable to use the hand. A university hospital assessed his loss of working capacity at 72 percent. The Social Insurance Institution (SSK), however, recognized a rate of 65 percent and granted him a permanent incapacity benefit.

Cuma said that because he first became insured in 2005, he was told he needed to complete 20 years of insurance coverage and the required number of premium days. After meeting those conditions, he went to the SGK in May 2025 to apply for retirement.

By then, however, the new rules introduced on Jan 15, 2025, were in effect. Cuma said SGK officials told him that retirement based on a tax reduction certificate had been abolished and that his existing disability rating did not meet the new requirements.

Cuma said a university hospital to which he was referred again increased his incapacity rating to 75 percent. Despite this, the SGK upheld its rejection, and his appeal to the High Health Council was also denied.

Cuma said he had struggled to find work since losing his right hand. He could no longer work in factories and had also been unable to find a job through the Turkish Employment Agency (İŞKUR). He said he had waited 10 years to retire and described his situation as follows:

“We are not asking our state for a favor. We are asking for the vested right that we earned.”

(SG/HA/VK)

The investigation followed a targeted campaign against Matiz in pro-government media and on social media after the video was released.

Neither the song nor the video contains explicit queer lyrics or imagery. The video shows a man preparing to marry a woman exchanging contemplative looks with another man at the wedding venue. Social media comments suggested that the clip depicted a conflict involving a gay man living as straight.

Famous singer Seda Sayan also appears in the music video that gained nearly one million views in two days.

Matiz is a popular and acclaimed singer in Turkey, with more than 2 billion total streams on Spotify and a monthly audience of over 20 million on YouTube.

As an openly queer singer, they previously faced an obscenity case over their song “Perperişan,” released in September. They were acquitted in that case.

The Family and Social Services Ministry had also sought an access ban on “Perperişan,” arguing that it was contrary to “public order and public health.” A court subsequently odered an access ban on the song.

The clip of Ha Leylim:

'Obscenity' investigations

In recent years, authorities have increasingly used obscenity laws against adult-content creators, while the scope of such investigations has also extended beyond explicit material. Public figures such as musicians and social media personalities faced obscenity charges over their statements and the content they produced.

Article 226 of the Turkish Penal Code prohibits the publication of obscene content through the media. The law covers "general obscenity" and "obscenity involving children" but does not provide a specific definition of obscene material.

Publishing or facilitating the publication of obscene images, writing or speech is punishable by six months to three years in prison and a judicial fine of up to 5,000 days.

Influencer Fatma Soydaş jailed over 'obscene content'

24 July 2026

Turkey expands ‘obscenity’ investigations to musicians as 'girl band' given travel ban

10 September 2025

Photographer Bennu Gerede detained on 'obscenity' charges after showing vibrator during interview

4 August 2026

(HA/VK)

The office said the investigation targeted the alleged "Alihan Kuriş criminal organization" and did not mention the Süleymancılar group.

Simultaneous raids in the morning targeted 123 addresses in 17 provinces, İstanbul, Ankara and Antalya. Prosecutors issued detention warrants for 49 suspects and three were found to be abroad.

Authorities also seized assets belonging to the suspects and appointed trustees to over 30 companies linked to their members.

The group is facing allegations of “establishing and leading a criminal organization,” “membership in a criminal organization,” “laundering assets derived from crime,” “fraud to the detriment of public institutions and organizations” and violations of the Tax Procedure Law.

Similar religious orders and communities in Turkey have a presence in both civil society and the economy, operating through foundations and companies.

Suspicious money transfers

The prosecutor’s office said the investigation was focused on the financial activities of companies linked to the suspects.

According to a report by Turkey’s Financial Crimes Investigation Board (MASAK) included in the case file, some of the companies examined saw sharp increases in financial transactions and the volume of goods bought and sold after 2020.

MASAK assessments found that some companies received large cash inflows whose sources required explanation and that substantial transfers were made between companies and their shareholders.

Investigators are also examining discrepancies between some companies’ commercial records and banking transactions, as well as foreign currency transfers received from companies abroad. 

Some 100 billion liras, or around 23 million dollars, were transferred abroad through various methods using individuals and companies believed to be linked to the group, according to MASAK.

The investigation includes allegations that some transactions may have involved fraudulent invoicing. (NÖ/VK)

The limited presence of women deputies at the podium during a parliamentary debate centered on peace and an end to conflict has raised another question: How much of a role will women have in decision-making and oversight mechanisms?

Parliament on Aug 10 approved the Bill on Strengthening National Solidarity and Social Integration with 467 votes in favor, 87 against and seven abstentions. Thirty-one lawmakers did not participate in the vote.

The law covers offenses related to the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), stipulating the deferral of sentences and ongoing cases for up to 10 years, which could effectively amount to a pardon.

It excludes the "intentional killings" committed as part of PKK activities, as well as offenses carrying an aggravated life sentence which were committed before Jun 1, 2005. This means the group's leader, Abdullah Öcalan, as well as many others, are not within the scope of the law.

Parliament passes bill suspending sentences for PKK members

11 August 2026

bianet spoke with women politicians who voted in the General Assembly but did not address parliament that day, asking what roadmap should follow the law, what safeguards should govern its implementation and what role women should play in the process.

Elif Esen, deputy chair of the Democracy and Progress (DEVA) Party, Sevda Karaca, deputy chair of the Labour Party (EMEP), and Meral Danış-Beştaş from the pro-Kurdish Peoples' Equality and Democracy (DEM) Party, shared a common message: Passage of the law is not the end of the process. The real test will come during implementation, and decision-making mechanisms without women will remain incomplete.

'Transparency and equal representation'

DEVA lawmaker Elif Esen said the law's passage marked the beginning of a new phase. She said disarmament should now proceed through a credible, independent and verifiable process:

"The adoption of the law is by no means an end, quite the opposite, it is the beginning of a new phase. Disarmament and the end of the organization's de facto existence must be carried out, monitored and verified in a credible, independent and auditable manner; every decision within the scope of the law must transparently be based on clear criteria, individual assessment and judicial review. Peace is strengthened by law, fraternity by equal citizenship, and national unity by trust."

Esen said women should not be confined to a symbolic role as the "conscience" or "softening voice" of the process:

"Women politicians cannot be assigned only a symbolic role as the conscience or softening voice of the process. Women must be part of the process as equal decision-makers in decision-making, implementation and oversight mechanisms. Because women's representation is not merely a gender issue, it is a force that brings the current problems and needs of women, who make up half of society, into mechanisms for solutions. Without women's perspective, experience and decision-making power, the peace table remains incomplete."

'All mothers’ tears are the same color': Peace Mothers reflect on PKK weapon-burning ceremony

16 July 2025

'A democratic solution goes beyond disarmament'

EMEP deputy Sevda Karaca said the political meaning attributed to the law should be distinguished from the specific area it regulates:

"The laying down of arms and the democratic resolution of the Kurdish issue are not the same political issue. The first is an important development that can open the way for the second, but it cannot replace the second."

She said parliament should not withdraw from the process after passing the law, but should establish a mechanism capable of continuously monitoring implementation:

"More consultation, greater openness and stronger common ground are needed to develop a shared position together. We must strengthen the channels through which we can jointly build a common position reflecting the democratic demands of the Kurdish people, workers' demands for peace and equality, and the forces struggling for the democratization of Turkey.

"The responsibility for this of course lies primarily with the government. But the government's lack of transparency cannot be a reason for us to reduce openness and solidarity among ourselves. On the contrary, in such a period, we should make greater efforts to inform one another, debate, criticize and strengthen the grounds for common struggle."

Study: Youth believe in peace process but do not feel included

23 June 2026

Karaca said women's role in the process could not be reduced to their representation at negotiating tables, adding that women had experienced the consequences of conflict directly while also carrying the social memory of the struggle for peace and democracy:

"Women experienced the consequences of war and conflict in the most concrete areas of life. Displacement, poverty, loss, impunity, violence and political pressure directly affected women's lives. At the same time, despite all these conditions, women became one of the most important social forces ensuring the continuity of the struggle for peace and democracy."

'Women must be part of decision-making mechanisms'

DEM Party's Danış-Beştaş said the law's passage by a wide majority reflected the need and desire for peace among the peoples of Turkey. She added that the next stage required a clear, transparent roadmap tied to a timetable:

"An extremely important threshold has been crossed, and a definition for Kurds has now been established on a legal basis. In order to give due recognition to this tremendous effort and prevent the law from becoming an instrument of arbitrariness in the hands of those implementing it, a clear, transparent roadmap tied to a timetable is needed in the next stage."

A stop on the road to peace: The Framework Law

11 August 2026

Beştaş said peace could not be addressed solely as a security issue. She called for stronger democratic politics, freedom of expression and association and the rule of law, as well as the removal of barriers to equal citizenship.

"It has become clear that the Kurdish issue can be resolved not through instruments of tutelage or repression, but through social consensus, negotiation and a legal framework that guarantees collective rights. We must see that entirely different tomorrows await us if this legal framework is established and implemented."

Beştaş said women should participate in every stage of the process not merely as groups affected by conflict, but as political actors who develop policy, make decisions and negotiate:

"We must see women not only through their victimization, but as actors who produce politics, make decisions and negotiate. A peace process in which women do not participate equally and effectively in decision-making mechanisms remains incomplete. Women's organizations, women politicians and different sections of society must be included at every stage of the process." (NÖ/VK)

The moon will be only 1.8 percent illuminated, providing some of the best conditions for observing the annual meteor shower in recent years, according to Boğaziçi Observatory's Kandilli Observatory.

While the Perseids will remain visible throughout the night, conditions will improve after midnight. 

The meteors are expected to become visible at around 7.50 pm (GMT+3) in Turkey's easternmost areas and around 8.45 pm in the west.

The main peak is expected between 5 am and 7 am, but approaching daylight means the best viewing window will be from 2 am to 5 am.

“I’m just following their instructions. So I’m acting on the orders of the Secret Service and the military. They wanted me to fly on a different flight, on a different plane,” Trump told reporters at Joint Base Andrews near Washington. “I just have to do what they say.”

“I have a lot of threats that you don’t know about. Any consequential presidents have a lot of threats,” he added.

The Washington Post first reported the incident on Aug 10, saying Trump secretly departed Turkey after a NATO leaders’ summit in Ankara on Jul 7-8.

Trump initially boarded the older Air Force One jumbo jet in view of television cameras, according to the newspaper. Later, he was secretly transferred to a smaller Air Force C-32A aircraft in an airport catering truck normally used to load meals and other supplies before flights.

A video that later circulated on social media showed a catering truck driving away from Air Force One, corroborating the claim.

The White House had said the president was aboard Air Force One as he left the country.

Turkey had introduced extensive security measures ahead of the summit. Authorities closed many major roads, detained more than 200 people before the event, repaved roads and installed panels along routes the leaders were expected to travel.

Ankara court remands over 100 including academic, journalist ahead of NATO summit

26 June 2026

Ankara taxis to offer Turkish delight during NATO summit as city makeover draws ire

30 June 2026

(VK)

A video posted by the Fire Department on social media showed the goat standing on the viaduct support. A firefighter was lowered by rope from the roadway, secured the animal with another rope and helped lift it safely onto the bridge.

It was unclear how the goat ended up there.

“We couldn’t get an answer to the question, ‘How did you get down there?’ But we couldn’t leave our cute friend alone on the viaduct pillar either,” the fire department said in the post. “Our teams safely brought the adventurous goat up from the height onto the bridge.”

The Northern Marmara Motorway runs through the northern part of İstanbul, an area that includes forests and farmland.

Kuzey Marmara Otoyolu'nda keçi operasyonu! 🧗‍♂️🐐

"Oraya nasıl indin?" sorusuna yanıt alamadık ama sevimli dostumuzu viyadük ayağında yalnız da bırakamazdık! Ekiplerimiz, maceracı keçiyi yüksekten güvenli bir şekilde köprü üzerine çıkardı. pic.twitter.com/YdjdL5djep

— İstanbul İtfaiyesi (@ibbitfaiye) August 11, 2026

(VK)

Nelson Mandela’s autobiography, titled The Long Walk to Freedom, ends this way. When we learned the contents of the Framework Law last week, Mandela’s words came to my mind. Mandela’s words were not spoken after the process was officially completed in South Africa. The narrative in the book ends on the day Mandela was released from prison after 27 years.

This paragraph serves as a sort of summary of the life and struggle of Mandela—or Madiba, as his people call him. Ultimately, Madiba conducted negotiations regarding the decades-long conflict, knowing full well that the path to peace would not be completed overnight, and brought an end to the conflict in his country.

Peacebuilding in South Africa, however, continues even today.

Öcalan is also aware that the path to lasting peace is a long one. Indeed, the statement issued by the İmralı Delegation on Aug 3, following its meeting with Öcalan, begins with the words, “A journey of a thousand kilometers begins with a single step.” Öcalan’s assessment reveals that he views the law as a starting point and the first step on a long journey.

Criticisms and opinions about the law

Many criticisms can be—and are being—leveled at the text that was adopted by the Grand National Assembly of Turkey (TBMM) and became law. It is clear that the process will be lengthy and will require numerous legal regulations.

In this regard, the law adopted by Parliament is a stop along the road to peace.

When the draft was announced, we, as the Human Rights Association (İHD), shared our views on seven articles with the public. We stated that measures to prevent the process from dragging on, as well as distinctions made based on the date and type of the crime, would help shorten the path to peace. We emphasized that the law should also include public sector employees who were dismissed—particularly the Academics for Peace, who were expelled from universities for demanding peace.

Unfortunately, the criticisms of those openly opposed to the process do not offer many concrete proposals for a solution. My general observation regarding such criticisms is that they carry the risk of leading to the continuation of human rights violations. Ultimately, despite all its shortcomings, the continuation of the process is preferable to a conflict-ridden environment. As Cicero said: “The worst peace is better than the most just war.”

Such criticisms are not limited to those opposed to the process.

For example, a statement issued under the signature of the Movement Leadership (The PKK leadership uses this name after the group declared its dissolution, TN) reads: “This law contains serious errors and shortcomings. The recommendations made by the parliamentary committee regarding democratization and the resolution of the Kurdish issue have not been incorporated into this report.” The statement, which points out that the law contains shortcomings regarding the resolution of the Kurdish issue, emphasizes that “the law is a starting point.”

Some of the criticisms directed at the law, however, pertain to the process as a whole and are made from a broader perspective. These criticisms also include assessments of the ruling power's general policies that lead to human rights violations.

A critical perspective

We must act with the understanding that the law alone will not bring about peace. At this point, it is advisable to maintain a critical perspective regarding both the Framework Law and the process itself.

A critical perspective is an attitude that can ensure progress in the areas of democracy, the rule of law, rights, and freedoms proceeds in parallel with the laws enacted during the peace process.

Expectations from the law: Implementation

Laws are important, but their effective and proper implementation is even more important. As has often been pointed out, for example, there is no need for a legal amendment to secure the release of individuals such as Selahattin Demirtaş, Figen Yüksekdağ, Osman Kavala, Can Atalay, and others. Similarly, the release of sick prisoners faces administrative, not legal, obstacles.

We need to examine how the law is interpreted and how it impacts daily life. The monitoring committees overseeing the implementation of the Framework Law must be open to the participation of human rights organizations and experts working in the field of peace. In addition to those engaged in peace work, bar associations, professional organizations, labor unions, and women’s, youth, LGBTI+, and environmental organizations—which have a voice and policy stance in this area—must also be able to contribute meaningfully to the process.

For this reason, in our statement, the İHD emphasized that ensuring the monitoring commission is open to political and civil society participation will enhance trust in the process.

A similar view is expressed in a letter written by the Peace Foundation addressed to Parliament Speaker Numan Kurtulmuş. The relevant section of the Peace Foundation’s letter reads as follows: “We recommend that, during the establishment and operation of the Monitoring Commission, the knowledge, experience, and recommendations of civil society organizations working in the fields of conflict resolution and peacebuilding be utilized, and that the meaningful and effective participation of these organizations in the process be ensured.”

As emphasized in the statements by the İHD and the Peace Foundation, the meaningful and effective participation of civil society organizations will make a substantial contribution to the process.

Expectations for the process: Peace and democratization

Security-based policies pursued for decades regarding the Kurdish issue—which is, at its core, a matter of human rights and democracy—have caused profound damage. It is neither possible nor realistic to resolve such a deep-rooted issue, which directly affects millions of people and concerns society as a whole, with a single law.

Political will is the key factor in resolving the Kurdish issue, which encompasses many layers—political, economic, cultural, legal, and others. Given the significance of the issue, it is essential to closely monitor the policies and steps that political will will pursue.

In this regard, it is critically important to keep long-standing issues in areas such as democracy, the rule of law, freedom of the press, freedom of thought and expression, gender equality, and workers’ rights on the agenda when critiquing the text of the law.

To achieve peace

The road to peace is long.

Achieving peace requires the political will and maneuverability to overcome the deadlocks and obstacles encountered along the way. After all, achieving peace requires a long-term struggle and a sustained program.

Human rights and freedoms serve as our guide on the long road to peace.

Let us continue walking the long road to peace.

In recent years, securing visa appointments through the websites of foreign diplomatic missions, particularly those of European Union (EU) countries, has become increasingly difficult. Some consultancy firms have emerged claiming they can secure appointments, charging substantial fees to people seeking to travel abroad.

The İstanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office began investigating such companies, and found that they booked appointments in bulk through websites of diplomatic missions and authorized visa outsourcing providers, effectively making it more difficult for applicants to secure appointments directly.

Applicants were being charged large sums under categories such as “software,” “consultancy” and “service fees” in exchange for guarantees that visas or appointments would be secured within specified periods.

European journalists group urges EU to end 'discriminatory visa rejections' for journalists from Turkey

19 July 2023

Also, investigators allege that these fees were not refunded when the promised services were not provided.

An examination by the Treasury and Finance Ministry’s Tax Inspection Board identified more than 2.84 billion liras in transactions in accounts linked to the companies between Jan 2024 and Jul 2026. Investigators also found that about 918 million liras had been collected from more than 41,000 people who applied for visas.

A significant portion of the payments was allegedly transferred to accounts belonging to company partners and employees. Authorities also reported substantial transactions involving cash, crypto assets and precious metals. (HA/VK)

The attack took place on Apr 4, 2015, after Fenerbahçe defeated rival Trabzonspor 4-1 in a Süper Lig match. The team bus was traveling from Trabzon to the neighboring Black Sea province of Rize's airport following the match when it came under fire while crossing a viaduct.

The driver was seriously wounded after a bullet struck his face but managed to bring the bus to a stop. With the vehicle on a viaduct at the time of the shooting, the attack put the entire team at risk.

The team's head coach İsmail Kartal had recounted the incident in detail on its seventh anniversary in 2022:

There was a light rain when the shooting occurred. There was a doctor and a bodyguard sitting next to the driver. They held onto the driver to keep him from losing control. “Hit the brakes, hit the brakes!” they shouted. Everyone inside the bus was screaming and shouting. The bus veered right and left for 100–150 meters. We barely managed to stop. 

I have an interest in guns and hunting. I immediately realized what kind of bullet had been fired at us. Two shots were fired. The first one pierced the first layer of the double-paned glass at the front of the bus and got stuck in the second layer. The second bullet hit the side window. Since there was only a single pane of glass, it pierced through and struck the driver in the head. He was bleeding. Everyone panicked.

An investigation launched after the attack failed to identify those responsible.

Gürlek said authorities had reassessed the evidence in the case and carried out an operation targeting five suspects. Searches and seizures were conducted at the suspects’ addresses, he added.

“The sole purpose of this investigation is to identify, with concrete evidence, the person or persons behind this heinous attack carried out 11 years ago," said the minister. "Regardless of which team, athlete or supporter group it targets, our stance against violence in sports is clear.”

Gürlek announced on May 27 that the investigation had been reopened as part of a Justice Ministry initiative to resolve unsolved crimes.

The initiative began after Gürlek was appointed justice minister in February and has led to the reopening of several high-profile cases that remained unsolved for years.

The cases include the 1993 assassination of journalist Uğur Mumcu, the 1990 assassination of journalist Çetin Emeç, the 1987 assassination of writer, politician and theologian Bahriye Üçok, and the 2020 disappearance of university student Gülistan Doku.

Gürlek previously said nearly 700 case files were under review.

Six years after Gülistan Doku went missing, reopened probe leads to 12 detentions

14 April 2026

(VK)

The bill, titled “Strengthening National Solidarity and Social Integration,” passed with 467 votes in favor, 87 against and seven abstentions after about 12 hours of debate.

The provisions will take effect on the condition that the National Security Council (MGK) confirms the PKK has laid down its arms. When this confirmation is complete, the group's designation as a "terrorist organization" will be removed.

DEM urges swift implementation

Pro-Kurdish DEM Party co-chair Tülay Hatimoğulları said the party supported the law as a first step and called for its swift implementation:

“We see this law as establishing a framework and as a first step toward achieving peace in these lands in the period ahead. That is why we supported it.

“The concrete steps to be taken after this law are crucial. For the law to be implemented, it is just as important and vital as its passage that the National Security Council (MGK) prepare its report and publish it in the Official Gazette, and that the law thereby enter into force.

"We expect parliament to take stronger steps in the first days after it reconvenes, both through concrete measures toward Turkey’s democratization and through new legislation.”

Vote breakdown

Deputies from the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) cast 258 votes in favor, while the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP), its ally, contributed 44. The pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Equality and Democracy (DEM) Party cast 55 votes in favor, the New Path (Yeni Yol) Party 16 and the Workers’ Party of Turkey (TİP) three.

The Republican People’s Party (CHP) cast 29 votes in favor and two against. All 29 lawmakers from the nationalist Good (İYİ) Party who took part in the vote opposed the bill.

Deputies from the main opposition New (Yeni) Party, a slinter group from the CHP, cast 35 votes in favor and 54 against. The party leadership said before the vote that their MPs were free to make their decisions.

Parliament went into recess following the vote and will reconvene on Oct 1.

Background

The peace initiative to end the fource-decade armed conflict began in Oct 2024, when MHP leader Devlet Bahçeli proposed that jailed PKK leader Abdullah Öcalan be granted the “right to hope” in exchange for the group laying down its arms. The newly adopted law does not include any provision concerning the right to hope.

Öcalan called on the PKK to disarm in Feb 2025. The group later convened a congress in May 2025 and decided to dissolve itself. A symbolic disarmament ceremony was held two months after the congress.

A parliamentary committee established to prepare the legislative framework for the initiative spent the second half of the year working on the issue. Civil society groups, including the Saturday Mothers/People, as well as academics and journalists, were heard by the committee. 

In January, the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), seen by Turkey as an extension of the PKK in Syria, made an integration deal with the Turkey-backed Damascus government. As the integration nears comletion, the SDF and the People's Defense Units (YPG) are expected to declare their dissolution. (VK)

Terzi, who covers the İstanbul side, was detained on allegation of "publicly disseminating misleading information" in an investigation launched by İstanbul's Bakırköy Chief Public Prosecutor's Office.

Terzi was released later in the day after giving a statement to prosecutors.

Terzi made the report in question on Jul 26. The club denied the report five days later, describing the reporting, without naming the journalist, as "an attempt to create a perception aimed at discrediting our club’s transfer operations."

The reporter maintained that the transfer would take place, claiming Galatasaray had deliberately issued the denial. "I'm putting my head on the line for this story," he said.

BIA Media Monitoring Reports

13 December 2024

The İstanbul Bakırköy Chief Public Prosecutor's Office launched an investigation following a complaint, leading to Terzi's detention.

The case marks the first time the disinformation law has been applied to sports reporting.

The legislation has frequently drawn criticism from press freedom and freedom of expression groups, and dozens of journalists have been detained under the provision since it took effect in 2022.

Türkiye's new 'disinformation law' explained

14 October 2022

(VK)

Submitted to parliament on Aug 5, the bill would suspend prison sentences and ongoing legal proceedings for offenses linked to the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) for five or 10 years. Under the proposal, once state authorities confirm that the PKK has ceased to exist, it would be classified as a “dissolved organization,” triggering the suspensions.

AKP: An Ankara consensus

AKP parliamentary group's deputy chair Abdülhamit Gül said Turkey’s greatest strength was maintaining a united domestic front after decades of conflict.

Gül said the country had been forced to contend with what he described as the “shackles of terrorism” for 50 years, but argued that the unity of Turkey’s 86 million people remained its strongest protection.

Interview: AKP’s Mehmet Metiner rejects war rhetoric, says ‘neither Kurds nor Syria should lose’

9 January 2026

He said Turks and Kurds shared "not only the same country, but also a common history, symbols and sense of destiny," invoking Malazgirt, Jerusalem, Çanakkale and Sakarya as examples of past unity.

He argued that international conflict-resolution experiences would not serve as a model for Turkey.

“This is an Ankara consensus, a Turkey consensus and a Turkey model,” he said, describing the process as a model of peace that could set an example for the world.

MHP: For regional stability...

MHP Deputy Chair Feti Yıldız said the process was not an amnesty measure but a state policy.

Yıldız said the process could not be viewed solely through the lens of security, adding that it encompassed the survival of the state, the rule of law, democratic participation, social solidarity and economic development.

“A Turkey without terrorism means peace and tranquility. It means democracy and freedom. It means brotherhood,” Yıldız said, adding that political parties with differing worldviews had “come together on common ground and achieved a first in Turkey.”

Arguing that Turkey’s geopolitical position gives security risks both regional and global dimensions, Yıldız said the process aimed to reduce regional instability through a sense of fraternity and a shared awareness of history.

Bahçeli calls for release of Öcalan, Demirtaş as ‘Kurdish peace law’ heads to parliament

5 August 2026

New Party: ‘We don’t trust the government’

New Party leader Özgür Özel criticized the bill for focusing solely on the PKK and containing no provisions concerning Kurds and democratic rights, but said the party leadership would support it.

Özel said they had objections to both the substance of the bill and the way it was drafted. He said they did not trust the government but would not allow their political anger to stand in the way of the country’s future.

Turkey emphasizes fraternity in Friday sermons as Kurdish peace process gains momentum

7 August 2026

“We have more reason than anyone to vote against this bill, but we will not stand in the way of peace,” Özel said, announcing that he and the party executives would vote in favor of the proposal.

Özel said their deputies would make their decisions after taking into account the views of voters in the constituencies they represent.

DEM Party: There are shortcomings

DEM Party Co-Chair Tuncer Bakırhan said parliament needed to take responsibility for the process.

“We have an opportunity before us to break out of the cycle of conflict and violence,” Bakırhan said, adding that their aim was to prevent further suffering.

PKK leader Öcalan issues new message on anniversary of disarmament call

27 February 2026

Bakırhan said the process would contribute to Turkey’s integration and coexistence, adding that there were shortcomings and criticisms regarding the bill but that this was only the first stage. “What is being laid today is a foundation.”

Message from imprisoned Kurdish politicians

Kurdish leader Selahattin Demirtaş, who has been imprisoned since 2016, and Selçuk Mızraklı, who was jailed while serving as mayor of Diyarbakır, sent a message from prison:

“God willing, together you will take another critical step in an extremely important, historic peace effort that has the potential to fundamentally change the fate of our country and our region.

“Of course, there will be debates, criticisms and proposals. Each of them is valuable and contributes to the process. But we want it to be known that we have taken part in this process wholeheartedly, sincerely and seriously, solely to strengthen and expand the peace, prosperity and brotherhood of 86 million people, and we have supported the process with all our strength.

PKK announces withdrawal from Turkey, marking ‘next phase’ in peace process

27 October 2025

“This is not a process of division or separation, nor is it a process of give-and-take based on cheap bargaining.

“Every step that has been and will be taken will also pave the way for new horizons, new reforms and a new life. Of course, all these efforts must continue with strong and deep-rooted reforms in democracy, justice, equality and freedom, and must help our people attain the peaceful life they deserve. For this reason, it is extremely important for everyone and every segment of society to approach these issues with great care, sensitivity and seriousness.

“As a result of 40 years of conflict, there is hardly anyone left whose heart has not been wounded. We must therefore move this process forward with dignity, maturity and virtue, without creating images or displays of victory or causing feelings or fears of defeat. We must share our pain, leave it behind and walk hand in hand toward the future.

“Dear members of parliament, we hope that every vote you cast will serve to strengthen our peace, unity and brotherhood, and that your criticisms and warnings will be expressed constructively.”

Background

The peace process began in Oct 2024, when MHP leader Devlet Bahçeli proposed granting imprisoned PKK leader Abdullah Öcalan the “right to hope” in return for dissolving the group.

Öcalan called on the PKK to disarm in Feb 2025. The organization held a congress in May and decided to dissolve itself.

A parliamentary commission established in the second half of 2025 later worked on the process’s legal framework.

PKK declares disbandment, ending four-decade armed insurgency against Turkey

12 May 2025

(VK)

Aspendos is located in the Mediterranean resort city of Antalya in southern Turkey.

The Justice Ministry’s Information Technologies Directorate General said in a Jun 26 announcement through an internal system for judicial officials and legal proffessionals that it developed the AI-powered “CBS Organization Prediction Project” to reduce incorrect or incomplete entries concerning organizations in judicial records.

The system analyzes information contained in case files and automatically compares it with data on "terrorist organizations" registered in the ministry’s system, according to the directorate.

“The project, developed with our domestic and national resources, analyzes the case file and predicts which organization it may be linked to based on the information in the file, preventing incorrect or incomplete organization records,” the directorate said.

The ministry said the system was designed to assist judges and prosecutors during judicial proceedings by reducing human error and incomplete data entry.

The directorate added that it would continue developing similar AI-based projects.

Journalist says questions were 'AI-generated'

Yıldız Tar, a journalist and an LGBTI+ activist who spent several weeks in pretrial detention recently, suspects the system might have been used during a widespread crackdown ahead of the Jul 7-8 NATO summit in Ankara, which saw over 200 people detained.

The suspects, including journalists, academics, environmental colunteers and students, were accused of being a member of the Communist Party of Turkey/Marxist-Leninist (TKP/ML), an armed group that has largely been inactive for years.

"They announced this AI organization thing on Jun 26, when we were detained. It went unnoticed at the time. After I was questioned by the gendarmerie, I had said, 'The questions they asked me were generated by AI'," Tar wrote on social media yesterday. "The absurdity of the NATO arrests, which were a pilot for this system, is clear. We must not allow AI to be used to assign people to organizations. Otherwise, we will find ourselves in a joke that isn’t funny. 

Over 200 detained in Ankara raids ahead of NATO summit

23 June 2026

(VK)

The law introduces new sentencing regimes for children aged between 12-14 and 15-17.

The legislation comes after months of public debates regarding what are described as "new-generation criminal organizations" that frequently utilize individuals under 18, particularly in major cities. These organizations widely use social media to spread propaganda and recruit new members.

New sentencing regime

Under the new law, children aged 12 to 14 can be held criminally responsible if they are found to be capable of understanding the legal meaning and consequences of their actions and controlling their behavior. 

For those in this age group who meet that threshold, offenses punishable by aggravated life imprisonment will carry prison terms of 13 to 18 years. Offenses punishable by life imprisonment will carry terms of 10 to 12 years. Other sentences will be reduced by half, with prison terms capped at nine years for each offense.

CILDREN PUSHED INTO CRIME SPEAK OUT

'Everyone looks at us from the outside, they should see from the inside too'

13 January 2026

Children aged 12 to 14 who cannot understand the legal consequences of their actions or whose ability to control their behavior is insufficiently developed will not bear criminal responsibility. Courts will instead be able to impose security measures specifically designed for children.

A separate sentencing regime will apply to minors aged 15 to 17. For offenses carrying aggravated life imprisonment, courts will impose prison terms of 19 to 27 years. Life sentences will be replaced with terms of 15 to 18 years.

Other sentences for minors in this age group will be reduced by one-third, with prison terms capped at 15 years for each offense.

The law also requires children aged 12 to 17 to be housed in separate sections of closed juvenile detention facilities based on their sex, physical development and the type of offense.

Another provision introduces prison sentences for people who allow children to gain access to firearms by failing to store them with due care. Unless the conduct constitutes another offense carrying a heavier sentence, the penalty will range from one to three years in prison.

‘There is no state inside prison, I saw people setting each other on fire’

23 December 2025

Juvenile education 

The legislation also changes procedures for transferring juvenile prisoners from closed detention facilities to juvenile education facilities. Administrative and observation boards will review eligibility at least once every three months, with at least one specialist taking part in the assessment.

Eligible specialists include psychologists, pedagogues, child development experts, social workers, psychological counselors, guidance specialists, teachers and lawyers appointed by the Turkish Bar Association’s Children’s Rights Commission.

Official figures show increase in criminal incidents involving children in 2022

2 August 2023

Juvenile prisoners who receive a negative assessment based on their conduct and behavior must be reassessed within six months.

The law will also replace the term “children driven to crime” in the Child Protection Law with “children in judicial proceedings.”

Courts will also be able to defer the announcement of a verdict for children in judicial proceedings without requiring compensation for damages when the harm suffered by the victim or the public as a result of the offense is minor. (VK)

Photos and videos circulating on social media show people at these venues holding diapered goats confined indoors and feeding them with bottles.

The goats wander between tables as people have breakfast or drink coffee. The intense demand has led to the animals being bought as though they were products to be produced and consumed.

Marketed as an alternative to cats and dogs as household pets, goats are becoming increasingly visible in the animal trade. On farms and online, they generally sell for between 15,000 and 20,000 liras.

‘The lasting solution is to eliminate demand’

The commodification of goats raises serious concerns about animal rights and welfare.

Cansu Özge Özmen, a member of the Burak Özgüner Center for Animal Rights (BurHak), said people tend to find versions of many species that retain baby-like features throughout their lives more appealing:

“We see that this interest in babies and the instinct to protect them often turns into a desire to possess and consume when it comes to animals. Breeding certain species through artificial selection for traits that appeal to people, and turning them into commodities, is an approach that is far removed from protecting animals. Many species have been put on display over the years to attract visitors. Dwarf goats are just one contemporary example of this trend.”

Özmen stressed that animals bred for miniature size can face various hereditary and structural health problems, and that there is no legislation in Turkey directly regulating such venues:

“When we look at online advertisements for goats, we see that many sales are conducted individually and in a scattered manner. This raises serious questions about the extent to which all these sales are registered, taxed or effectively monitored in practice. The lasting solution is to eliminate demand.”

Özmen added that the most fundamental ethical responsibility was not to support the breeding or sale of any animal, noting that people who visit such venues or buy goats contribute to the suffering of countless animals. She added that goat farms are not subject to inspections either.

Cafes where animals are reduced to a concept

The popularity of these farms and cafes stems not only from their trendiness but also from people’s desire to experience what they see on social media. At the same time, spending time with domesticated, appealing animals can make people feel good and reduce stress. This is known in the literature as the “pet effect.”

Research shows that living with companion animals can reduce stress levels and have positive effects on heart health. Contact with animals is also known to reduce levels of cortisol, commonly known as the stress hormone.

The situation is different, however, for species such as goats that are not accustomed to frequent interaction with humans. Their stress levels can rise under intensive human contact, with studies reporting increases in cortisol levels.

Concept cafes where people can spend time with animals are more widespread in various countries around the world.

Such cafes, which began opening in Japan in 2004, have faced considerable criticism. Cafes featuring hundreds of domesticated and exotic animals have attracted international attention.

In Japan, these cafes operate under zoo licenses, while conditions for animals at the cafes are even more restrictive than those in zoos.

Research conducted at animal cafes also indicates that animals need spaces where they can retreat. A study at a cat cafe in Sweden found that the 27 cats living there sought refuge in elevated areas and hiding places when customer numbers were high.

(EK/TY/VK)

The court’s General Assembly issued the ruling on Mar 5, 2026. The reasoned decision was published in the Official Gazette yesterday.

The court ruled by a majority that the refusal violated the right to respect for private life guaranteed under Article 20 of the Constitution. It also granted the applicant’s request to keep his identity confidential in publicly available documents.

The applicant, identified as E.D. in the ruling, legally changed his name through a court decision finalized in 2016. Another court ruling finalized in 2018 changed the gender recorded in the population registry from female to male.

E.D. graduated from Bartın University’s Faculty of Economics and Administrative Sciences in 2014. He subsequently asked the university to reissue his diploma, which contained his former name and identity information, using his current information.

The university rejected the request, saying its regulations did not provide for issuing a new diploma following subsequent changes to a person’s identity information. It instead offered to add a note to the existing diploma explaining the name change.

Local courts rejected the application 

E.D. challenged the decision at the Zonguldak Administrative Court, which dismissed his case. The court argued that the diploma reflected the legal and factual circumstances at the time it was issued and that subsequent changes to identity information did not require its reissuance.

The Ankara Regional Administrative Court also rejected his appeal.

High court review 

Filing an individual application with the Constitutional Court, E.D. argued that he had a right to keep his former name and gender change from being disclosed to third parties.

He said he was required to present his diploma when applying for jobs, which led to questions about his name and gender change.

The Constitutional Court said the right to privacy was not limited to the "right to be left alone" but also encompassed a person’s ability to control information about themselves.

The right to respect for private life includes preventing personal information from being disclosed, disseminated or made accessible to others without consent, the court noted.

It concluded that E.D.’s request to have his diploma reissued under his new name was directly related to his private life and privacy.

The Constitutional Court said the university administration and lower courts had rejected E.D.’s request based solely on secondary legislation without meaningfully addressing his privacy arguments.

"It is clear that information concerning the applicant’s gender change and name change falls within the scope of the right to privacy," the ruling said.

The court noted that E.D. had explained to the university and the courts why he wanted his changed identity information to remain private and why reissuing the diploma was necessary in his circumstances. Those arguments were not taken into account, it noted.

The refusal to reissue the diploma tipped the balance between the public interest and E.D.’s individual interests against the applicant, according to the court. Public authorities had also failed to provide sufficient reasons showing why their decision was necessary and proportionate.

Council of State had ordered new diploma in similar case

The Constitutional Court also cited a similar 2021 ruling by the 8th Chamber of the Council of State, the top administrative court.

The Council of State had found that a person’s former name and gender information should not be disclosed to third parties after the legal gender recognition process had been completed.

It also said bringing official documents into line with a person’s legally recognized identity was directly connected to their personal integrity.

The Council of State found that refusing to issue a diploma containing updated identity information could violate fundamental rights and freedoms, particularly the right to privacy.

Retrial order

The Constitutional Court sent the ruling to the Zonguldak Administrative Court for a retrial to remedy the violation.

It also ordered the payment of 40,446.90 liras to E.D. for legal costs.

Judges Muhterem İnce and Ömer Çınar dissented. They argued that adding a note to the diploma explaining the name change was sufficient and that retaining the former name did not impose an "excessive burden" on the applicant. (HA/VK)

I had an appointment at a new hospital, our usual one had centralised services. We thought it would be a routine check-up, far from it as I was later to discover.

We got on the bus in a semi unconscious state and got stung straight away. My wife handed the money over. “And what about you husband?” You guessed it, it had doubled. The long long journey hugged the coastline and trees, the latter is such a wonder here, so many varieties. Despite it all I felt lucky.

We got dropped off at what appeared to be a bombsite. “You get the bus to the hospital from there.” “Are you sure this is a bus stop?” I sheepishly said to my wife. “Yes,” pointing to the sign, starting to get angry. She began to take pictures. It’s not that nice I thought. “I’m going to complain to the council”. When the bus arrived 7000 people squeezed into a bus made for 10, higher and higher we climbed leaving humanity behind us, an old lady noticed my t shirt “Ahh my Atatürk” she said, as if mourning for something deeper.  

Over the horizon we saw a modern-day Lord of the Rings, dwarfing the landscape. We had arrived just in time but we hadn’t. The bus almost grinded to a halt as we snaked around the complex, eventually one hour late for our appointment, we reached our stop. We walked inside and quickly became nothing; this was a soulless shopping mall with no shops. I noticed for the first time in a government building there were no pictures of Atatürk or no pictures at all for that matter. You felt small and stripped of your personality or country, this could be anywhere. Seating was minimal and outside none, if there had been a cluster of them a revolution would have happened. Turkish people are communal here, you were just one. We passed some area with high columns like an Egyptian or Roman temple disappearing into the sky. A notice said this was for “Health Tourists,” your own personal doctor, service, surgeon etc. We both felt it, my wife voiced it. “Who is this hospital for?” We both went quiet and moved across the vast temple of the foreigner. I found out that the signs were in English, we all know why. We waited and interacted with people and the staff, we still managed to create our friendly Turkey here, the staff doctors etc. were wonderful. They examined my eyes over and over again, I had a tear on one and they carried out laser surgery there and then. I was most grateful.

We left perplexed and relieved. How many people needing care could actually get here let alone afford it? There are pros and cons to these mega services.

I couldn’t help feeling what would he on my tshirt think, I will leave that up to you. 

The New Party was founded on Jul 24 by Özgür Özel after a court ruling removed him as CHP leader. Ninety of the CHP's 135 deputies joined Özel, formally gaining the new party main opposition status.

Turkey’s main opposition party officially splits as Özel declares New Party

24 July 2026

The defections have apparently spread to local administrations now, as New Party deputy head Yaşar Tüzün said they expect the total number of mayors joining the party to exceed 300 by the end of this month.

Asked by reporters about the mayors of İstanbul and Ankara, however, Tüzün said, “We have had no talks. They will make their decisions after conducting their own assessments as the process continues.”

The defections mean the CHP has now lost more than half of the municipalities it won, with only a handful of city mayors remaining in their ranks.

Under Özel’s leadership, the CHP won mayoralties in 35 of Turkey’s 81 provinces in the 2024 local elections. It secured more than 400 municipalities, including districts and towns, making it the most popular party in that election.

However, a sweeping corruption crackdown targeting CHP-controlled municipalities began in March last year. More than 35 mayors have been arrested and suspended from office in the investigations since then, including İstanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu, whom Özel had declared the CHP’s presidential candidate at the time, as well as the mayors of major cities such as Antalya, Adana and Bursa.

An Ankara court separately ruled in May that the CHP’s 2023 congress, where Özel was elected party leader, was null because of irregularities and reinstated former leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu. The ruling is under appeal, but Özel founded the New Party without waiting for the appeals process to conclude.

Court removes leadership of Turkey's main opposition party

21 May 2026

Last week, Ankara prosecutors sought authorization to investigate Özel on bribery allegations related to the 2023 congress. Such an investigation could proceed if parliament lifts Özel’s immunity.

Özel claims that these judicial moves are politically motivated and intended to weaken the opposition after its success in the 2024 local elections. The government rejects the allegations, saying that witnesses in many of the investigations are themselves CHP members. (VK)

The agreement stipulates that an armed attack against any one of the three countries will be regarded as an attack against them all.

Pakistan, the only one of the three countries with nuclear weapons, previously signed a similar bilateral defense agreement with Saudi Arabia in September.

A joint statement released by the countries after the signing of the agreement said it "reflects shared commitment to further strengthening their collective security and to promoting peace, security, and stability in the region and beyond, in pursuit of a secure and prosperous future."

"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," said the statement. "It further provides for the enhancement of all aspects of defence cooperation among the three States."

The development came against the backdrop of the US-Israeli war on Iran, during which Tehran retaliated with missile and drone strikes on US assets in several countries, including Saudi Arabia.

Hostilities between Saudi Arabia and the Iran-backed Houthi forces in Yemen have also resumed since last month. The Houthis say they have imposed a "blockade" on Saudi vessels passing through the Bab al-Mandeb Strait, forcing them to reroute around the Cape of Good Hope, in response to Riyadh's ongoing blockade on Yemeni airports. The two sides have also exchanged missile and airstrikes. 

‘Turkey wants neither Israel nor Iran to dominate Middle East’

3 April 2026

(VK)

"At a time when wars are spreading to different regions, blood and tears reign in the Islamic world, and our country is sought to be dragged into the ring of fire, our future depends on our fraternity," the sermon said. "In this heavenly homeland that our ancestors entrusted to us by sacrificing their lives, our joys, our sorrows, our prayers, and the differences we embrace as a source of richness will unite us as one."

The sermon, delivered by imams as part of the communal Friday prayers, is prepared by the Presidency of Religious Affairs (Diyanet) and read out at all mosques across the country. 

The sermons frequently touch on the country's agenda, and this week's sermon followed the long-anticipated legal framework for the peace process. The bill foresees the suspension of legal proceedings and prison sentences against members of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) under certain conditions as part of efforts to reintegrate them in exchange for the group laying down its arms.

The bill was submitted with the signatures of 358 of parliament’s 592 lawmakers and is expected to pass with broad support.

Turkey unveils draft law on Kurdish peace process, PKK reintegration

5 August 2026

The Diyanet sermon emphasized the importance of unity and fraternity in the face of outside forces and cited verses from the Quran and sayings attributed to the Prophet Muhammad:

"Just as yesterday, there will be those today who covet our brotherhood, seek to undermine our unity, and wish to turn us against one another.

"If we remain faithful to our religion and our sacred values in accordance with Almighty Allah's command, “Hold fast, all together, to the rope of Allah; do not be divided,” the fire of strife and corruption will not touch us.

"If we heed the call of the Prophet of Mercy (peace be upon him), who said, “Do not sever ties with one another; do not turn your backs on one another; do not harbor grudges against one another; do not envy one another. O servants of Allah! Be brothers,” then division and discord will find no foothold in these lands.

"What falls upon us today is to act with foresight against discord and with a sense of unity against division, and to protect and look out for one another. We must steer clear of anything that could undermine our brotherhood and lighten one another’s burdens. We must come together around our national and spiritual values, and never forget that there is mercy in unity and torment in division." (FY/VK)

MESEM is a program that replaces high school education, where children attend school one day a week and participate in internships for the remaining four days.

The child's family contacted the police and relevant authorities in December. An arrest warrant was issued for the suspect, but he has not yet been detained. The family also alleged that they were threatened following their complaint.

Investigation launched into alleged abuse of student interns at Turkey's parliament

10 December 2025

'I don't think an effective investigation is being carried out'

The case has been raised in statements by the Education and Science Workers’ Union (Eğitim-Sen) and in by motions in parliament.

Sait Hikmet Barış, the child’s lawyer, told bianet that they don't believe the allegations are being investigated effectively, criticizing the failure to detain the suspect.

“It is unfortunately a security weakness that he has not been detained despite an arrest warrant being issued for him," he said. "We know that the suspect remained within the country for some time after the incident but could not be found."

The lawyer said authorities had told the family that the suspect was being sought, but he did not believe the efforts were sufficient in terms of physical and technical suveillance efforts.

Turkey's vocational education system draws scrutiny amid child worker deaths

8 December 2025

What evidence is in the case file?

Barış said the file included a report by the suspect’s wife, complaints by the child’s parents and the child’s own statement. "The child’s external examination reports were also added to the file,” he added.

A confidentiality order was later placed on the investigation, preventing the lawyers from accessing information and documents subsequently added to the case file, he said.

The lawyer argued that a separate case should also have been opened over allegations that the suspect threatened his former wife with a firearm. He said there had been no such act against the child or the family but that they had nevertheless sought a protective measure.

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Call for tighter oversight

The child’s lawyers submitted written notifications to public institutions responsible for overseeing the workplace where the MESEM student was employed.

Barış said they contacted the District National Education Directorate and units of the Agriculture and Forestry Ministry responsible for the business.

He argued that stronger oversight is needed to protect children in the MESEM program and said the relevant institutions had failed to take adequate precautions.

“What we have seen from this case is that very strict safeguards and measures are necessary for the operation of the MESEM program," he noted. "But it is also clear that the relevant institutions have serious shortcomings in implementing these measures. There is unquestionably negligence.”

Report finds over 200 cases of child abuse in three months

6 April 2026

Suspect reportedly in Greece

Barış said the confidentiality order meant they did not have detailed information about the current stage of the investigation. Prosecutors had informed them, however, that an arrest warrant had been issued for the suspect.

“We don’t have full information about the stage the investigation has reached because of the confidentiality order. But the prosecutor’s office informed us that there is an arrest warrant for the suspect," he said.

“In our meetings, we were told that they were also under pressure and that continuous efforts were being made to locate the suspect," the lawyer added.

WORLD CHILDREN'S DAY

Nearly 30,000 lawyers appointed in child abuse cases in İstanbul over five years, report reveals

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He said much of what the lawyers considered important evidence had been secured. Audio recordings were also included in divorce proceedings filed by the suspect’s former wife.

“As things stand, the child’s examination leaves no doubt concerning the abuse," he noted.

Barış said they had received information that the suspect was in Greece.

He said they had asked prosecutors to seek an Interpol Red Notice for the suspect in an effort to secure his extradition to Turkey. (NÖ/VK)

Salah traveled to the Araklı district following the signing ceremony for an advertising shoot, where he met the district mayor, Hüseyin Avni Coşkun Çebi, local media reported.

In a video filmed there, Çebi is seen telling Salah through an interpreter, “The two countries are similar. Although both are very beautiful, their people struggle with poverty," referring to Turkey and Salah's country, Egypt.

The mayor then abruptly turns to climate change: “Global warming is threatening the world. In the future, it will become difficult to live in Egypt during the summer. Our district will be very livable in those years. It will be among the places least affected by global warming.

“Therefore, let us give you a beautiful piece of land here. It can be a wonderful place for your children and grandchildren, with no water problems and unaffected by global warming.”

Salah appears confused and scratches his face as the mayor speaks. He then smiles, says, “Thank you,” and shakes Çebi’s hand.

Trabzon, a province of around 825,000 people, lies on Turkey’s northeastern Black Sea coast. While its coastal areas feature dense and unplanned development, its mountainous interior is forested and cool.

The province is expected to be less affected by climate change than the Mediterranean basin, which includes southern Turkey and Egypt.

New study predicts climate change impact on Turkey's regions

28 September 2023

The 34-year-old right winger, widely considered among the best football players of his generation, will receive an annual salary of 10 million euros and a signing-on fee of 7 million euros from Trabzonspor each year, amounting to a 34 million-euro guaranteed payment, according to a public disclosure by the club.

The agreement also includes performance-related bonuses for each season and a 20 percent share of revenue from merchandise sold under Salah's name, such as team jerseys.

In recent years, astronomical fees and salaries paid by Turkey's major football clubs have become a subject of public criticism in the country, where the monthly minimum wage is 28,000 liras, or slightly more than 500 euros, and a significant share of workers earn that amount.

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Upon the completion of Salah's transfer, Trabzon Metropolitan Mayor Ahmet Metin Genç announced the purchase of 6,661 jerseys with the player's name, worth more than 500,000 euros, to celebrate the signing. The mayor did not disclose whether he paid for the shirts himself or used municipal funds. The number of shirts appears to have been chosen specifically to include 61, the city’s license plate code.

Trabzonspor is considered Turkey’s fourth-biggest club after İstanbul’s "Big Three" and holds a central place in the city’s identity. The club has won seven Süper Lig titles and claimed its most recent championship in 2022 after a decades-long wait. (VK)

Mehmet Eltutan was traveling in a truck belonging to a PVC manufacturer when a billboard being transported in the truck bed was blown by the wind and struck him.Eltutan lost his balance and fell onto the road. 

Workplace deaths in Turkey exceed 1,000 in first half of 2026

15 July 2026

Emergency and security teams were dispatched to Aksu Road after witnesses reported the incident. Eltutan was taken to Pazarcık State Hospital with serious injuries after receiving first aid at the scene.

He died despite medical treatment. A judicial investigation has been launched.

Eltutan was the 38th child worker recorded as having died this year by the Health and Safety Labor Watch (İSİG). At least 852 minors have been killed on the job since 2013, according to the group.

Under Turkish law, minors aged 15 to 18 may work under certain conditions.

Six child workers under 14 killed on the job in Turkey in one month

10 September 2025

(HA/VK)

The ministry's General Directorate of Cinema is demanding 175,000 liras (~3,670 US dollars) provided for the production of the Şiirli Odanın İzinde (In Pursuit of the Poetic Room), plus interest.

Changing criteria

Elmas claimed that the directorate increasingly evaluates funding applications based on film content rather than technical quality.

“In documentary filmmaking, as far as I have witnessed, films used to be assessed technically,” she said. “They would look for problems such as a black screen left in the film or unreadable subtitles. In recent years, however, the film’s content has also become part of the assessment.”

However, after completing her documentary on Cappadocia—a region in Central Anatolian famous for its fairy chimneys and tourist attractions—and submitting it to the directorate, which was necessary to receive the remainder of the fund, Elmas did not receive a response for a long time. She was eventually informed by phone that the decision to support the movie was reversed.

“When they called, I thought they were going to mention a technical problem,” said Elmas. “I expected them to say the CD would not open or that there was some technical fault. Instead, they told me, ‘Your film was found to be political'.”

After the phone call, Elmas repeatedly tried to contact officials at the General Directorate of Cinema and eventually spoke with a deputy director general. 

“They told me, ‘In your film, you hold our ministry responsible for what is happening in Cappadocia. You present our Area Directorate as the responsible authority. This is not something we can accept,’” Elmas said. “I told them that, as a citizen, I had documented the reality of what was happening.”

The official denied Elmas's request for a reassessment by a relevant board, she said.

The documentary follows a resident campaigning against road construction in Cappadocia. Elmas asserted that the film aimed to present the events as they unfolded.

Elmas said the official notice canceling the support reached her months late, while interest was calculated from the date the funding was originally paid. 

“When the payment is made, its value is eroded by inflation. But when they demand it back, they calculate interest on a daily basis," she added. 

Increasing pressure on independent filmmakers

Elmas said she later learned that other directors had faced similar practices with some films accepted only after certain scenes were removed.

Some filmmakers choose not to speak publicly about their experiences Elmas said, arguing that is important to share what they went through. “We are being asked to retreat further. The more we retreat, the less space remains for us," she said.

“Filmmakers in Turkey are not financially strong,” she added. “The slightest intervention can turn everything upside down. You are disrupting not only production but also people’s lives. This amounts to intimidating many others.”

İsmail Doğan, a member of the Cinema Workers’ Union (Sine-Sen) told bianet that Elmas’s case was one of several practices independent filmmakers had recently faced.

“Demanding the return of support because of a film’s content, or requesting changes to films, pushes directors toward self-censorship. This directly affects independent film production," he said.

Doğan warned that public funding mechanisms are becoming tools of censorship.

bianet contacted the General Directorate of Cinema but was unable to reach an authorized official before publication. (SGE/EMK/VK)

The İstanbul Metropolitan Municipality City Theaters announced her death and offered condolences to her family.

“We are deeply saddened to learn of the death of Bilgesu Erenus, one of the valuable figures of Turkish theater and literature,” it said. “We remember with respect and mercy Bilgesu Erenus, who left a profound mark on dramatic literature through her works and wrote ‘Yaftalı Tabut,’ which is part of our repertoire.”

A memorial ceremony will be held at the Harbiye Muhsin Ertuğrul Stage on Aug 8 at 10.30 am local time (GMT+3).

Erenus continued writing politically engaged plays even when they struggled to find stages. Her works addressed labor, history, political pressure, identity and the position of intellectuals in society.

Her plays included “El Kapısı,” “Ortak,” “Kaside,” “Kelaynaklar,” “Halide,” “555 K,” “Dokumacılar,” “Fikret,” “İkiantikomünist,” “Themis ile Lombroso” and “Yaftalı Tabut.”

She also wrote the novels “Kazı,” “Gece” and “Göz,” as well as memoirs, essays, biographies and screenplays. Her screenwriting credits included “Bir Tren Yolculuğu,” “İkili Oyunlar,” “Devlerin Ölümü” and “Dersim 38.”

Erenus worked at the Turkish Radio and Television Corporation (TRT) from 1965 to 1973. She left after her first play was staged by Ankara Art Theater, but later described both TRT and the theater as her principal schools.

Erenus served on the executive board of the Writers Union of Turkey between 1977 and 1979, when author Aziz Nesin chaired the organization.

Erenus also recorded the music albums “Şarkılarımız” in 1987 and “Şarkılarımız Kardeştir” in 1998.

Political activities

In 1984, she was among the intellectuals who took a declaration opposing the rule of Kenan Evren to Çankaya.

She also contributed to Toplumsal Kurtuluş magazine, founded by the late socialist author Yalçın Küçük and his colleagues, and was its owner for a period. In 1987, she helped organize and presented the first May Day gathering held after the 1980 military coup.

Her efforts to challenge restrictions on the Kurdish language through music frequently resulted in her detention.

In 1995, she was briefly held at Bayrampaşa Prison after being tried by a military court on an accusation of discouraging the public from military service. The case followed her participation in a meeting organized by the Cam-İş union.

Erenus also opened her home to people involved in political protests. In 1986, she hosted university students who could not find a place to hold a hunger strike during protests against the Council of Higher Education.

In 2001, she hosted mothers of prisoners who sought to voice demands concerning prison conditions, aiming to protect them from police violence in the streets.

Pandora's Box

During the 2000s, Erenus performed a show titled “Pandora’nın Kutusu,” or “Pandora’s Box,” at public gatherings and university theater departments. Accompanied by her guitar and İbiş, a traditional Turkish theater character, she revisited scenes from her plays to examine the recent history of Turkey and the world.

Journalist Meral Aslankaya recalled meeting Erenus during the student protests of Apr 1987, when more than 2,000 students marched from Aksaray to Beyazıt against a proposed law restricting student associations.

Erenus arrived with her guitar to support students holding a hunger strike after hundreds of protesters were detained, Aslankaya wrote.

“At the darkest moment, when artists, intellectuals, academics, trade unionists and society as a whole had been intimidated, Bilgesu Erenus stepped forward with her guitar and her heart,” she said. “She was an honorable intellectual of this country and an important symbol of a period’s struggle for democracy.”

She was born in 1943 in Gölpazarı, in the northwestern province of Bilecik, where her father served as a district governor.

After attending Kadıköy Girls’ College, she briefly studied law and at a conservatory. She later graduated from İstanbul University’s Institute of Journalism. (VK)

On the first day of the workshop, participants addressed various topics, ranging from how space is produced through social relations to the relationship an investigator builds with space, and from accessing spatial information via open sources to writing practices prior to fieldwork.

The workshop began with opening and framing remarks by Atölye BİA Coordinator Ceyda Sungur, followed by an introduction session among participants.

From knowing space to transforming it: Spatial literacy

The workshop opened with the session titled "Introduction to Spatial Literacy," led by Dr. Ceyda Sungur. Sungur discussed what spatial literacy means with the participants. She addressed space through social memory, daily life, class relations, and urban transformations.

Participants discussed the relationship between space and memory using various examples. Among these examples were the architects of buildings, doorbells, houses shrinking due to urban transformation, and changing commercial structures in neighborhoods. Sungur described spatial literacy as a process of "knowing, getting acquainted with, and transforming."

Sungur drew attention to the importance of going beyond merely knowing a space and becoming involved in the social relations there:

When we encounter the set of social relations carried by the space, we begin to experience an acquaintance with that space. In this way, we become part of the space and the social relations there, meaning we begin to be involved. Here, I would like to emphasize the difference between inclusion and involvement. Inclusion means being part of something, whereas involvement also contains the capacity to change and transform it. We can think of this process as a process of gaining awareness.

In this framework, Sungur addressed spatial literacy as a process that develops through critical thinking and turns into a practice of citizenship over time.

How is space produced through social relations?

In the second session of the day, Ceyda Sungur met with participants under the title "Production of Social Space." The session began with the question, "Why do we call it social space rather than just space?" Participants discussed this question through memory, socialization, equality, safe spaces, and the relations that different social groups establish with space.

Sungur emphasized that space is shaped alongside social relations. She explained that social relations are established within space, and these relations continuously change the space itself. She said socioeconomic conditions, culture, identity, gender, and power relations play a role in the production of space.

Sungur emphasized through daily practices that space is experienced differently based on gender:

You can only walk along certain routes. You prefer places only where there is light, perhaps extending your route to feel safer. But having light is not enough to feel safe either. We also think of homes as safe spaces. However, domestic violence is one of the most micro-level spaces where psychological and social violence also takes physical form.

Getting closer to space: Where does the researcher stand?

In the third session of the day, Gülşah Aykaç met with participants under the title 'Getting Closer to Space.' Drawing from her own spatial research experiences, Aykaç addressed the intimacy established when researching a space and the researcher's position in knowledge production. She explained that as one gets closer to space, different layers are revealed and the researcher begins to question their own assumptions.

Aykaç focused on the concepts of positionality and self-reflexivity. She said the identity, background, and experiences of the researcher affect the relationship established with space. She stated that prioritizing 'getting acquainted' with a place is more important than merely knowing it. She described this acquaintance as a mutual process where the researcher tries to understand the space while the space also affects the researcher.

Aykaç pointed out that while producing knowledge about space, the researcher must also question their own position:

We have an experience in a space, but whose experiences exist there? Are there experiences of suppressed people or experiences that are never mentioned? If we are talking about embodied knowledge, we can ask 'Whose body?', and if we are talking about self-reflexivity, we can ask 'Whose space?'

The ethical dimension of producing knowledge was also discussed in the session. Aykaç conveyed being careful and thoughtful toward the researched place and its residents through the 'ethics of care.' She drew attention to the ethical dimension of choices in the research process, ranging from the decision to take photos to the language used.

Accessing spatial information from open sources

In the fourth session of the day, Nuray Çolak Tatlı met with participants under the title 'Accessing Spatial Information from Open Sources.' Çolak Tatlı explained the open sources that can be used when researching a space and how the data obtained from these sources can be evaluated in journalism.

Addressing how maps represent space, Çolak Tatlı emphasized that what is left out on a map is as important as what is shown. She pointed out that the production purposes of maps and the techniques used can affect the information that emerges about space.

Maps from different periods of İstanbul, aerial photos, and digital databases were examined during the session. By comparing maps and aerial photos from different dates, participants saw through examples how changes in urban transformation and construction can be tracked over time.

Çolak Tatlı also drew attention to the possibilities that spatial data from open sources can provide in journalism. She shared that different information, from which institution is responsible for a road to cultural heritage structures, and from population and transportation data to urban development, can be researched through maps.

How do you know Tarlabaşı?

The first day of the workshop concluded with a writing exercise titled "How Do You Know Tarlabaşı?" Participants were asked to write down what they knew, heard, and were curious about the area before going to Tarlabaşı.

In the exercise, participants noted their existing impressions of Tarlabaşı and the topics they wanted to see or question in the field. These initial texts aimed to make the participants' baseline assumptions about the space visible prior to the field study to be conducted the following day.

After the fieldwork, participants were asked to turn their "acquaintance story" with Tarlabaşı into a feature story.

Second day: Looking closely at Tarlabaşı

The second day of the workshop began with participants meeting at Taksim Square.

Discussions on space, social relations, and urban transformation addressed on the first day of the workshop continued on the second day with a field trip covering Taksim and Tarlabaşı, accompanied by Dr. Ceyda Sungur and Dr. Nuray Çolak Tatlı.

Starting around Taksim Square and Gezi Park, the trip addressed the relationship between space, memory, and publicness through the historical transformation of the area. The changing use of the square and the place of the Gezi Resistance in the recent history of the area were discussed.

Passing then to Tarlabaşı, participants reached Ağrılı Ahmet's Place coffeehouse by following the traces of the Taksim 360 Project and the surrounding urban transformation.

Continuing at Ağrılı Ahmet's Place in Tarlabaşı, participants did a free writing exercise before the field study.

Sungur and Çolak Tatlı asked participants to transfer what was on their minds to paper continuously, without being tied to a specific topic.

Explaining that the exercise was intended to overcome the hesitation that arises when starting to write and to strengthen the connection between the mind and the hand, Ceyda Sungur said it was not always necessary to find the "right sentence." She stated that wrong sentences or sentences whose purpose is not yet known can also be part of the writing process.

Following the free writing, participants went out to the field again to make observations in the streets of Tarlabaşı. Participants were asked to observe the surrounding people, structures, sounds, smells, and traces of daily life for 45 minutes and to note down what they saw.

The study focused on describing unique details encountered. Sungur also drew attention to the position established by the observer with the neighborhood:

This place is the living space of these people, and we come here as strangers. Therefore, being in a position observing the people who live here can create an unequal and patronizing relationship. By accepting our status as strangers, we need to observe and write without disturbing the people across from us as much as possible.

In pursuit of detail

Returning to the coffeehouse after the field study, participants shared their observations and encounters from the streets of Tarlabaşı. Their presentations focused on daily life in Tarlabaşı and the transformation of the neighborhood.

Participants also discussed how their predefined notions about the space could change through field observations. One participant pointed out that Tarlabaşı is frequently criminalized or romanticized. They explained that observing daily life in the street market led them to question their own expectations about the neighborhood.

Sungur and Çolak Tatlı asked participants to select a specific detail that caught their attention during the first walk and deepen their observations on it. Participants then took to the streets of Tarlabaşı once again to pursue their questions and speak with people in the neighborhood.

From observation to a feature story

Participants returned to Atölye BİA after the fieldwork in Tarlabaşı. In this session, they explained the topics that caught their attention in the field and how they wanted to turn them into feature stories.

Participant topics included abandoned and transforming structures in Tarlabaşı, people they encountered in the neighborhood, and prejudices about the area. One participant explained how their initial prejudices shifted following observations and interviews conducted in the neighborhood.

Based on the observations of the participants, Sungur and Çolak Tatlı offered suggestions on how they could structure their stories. (EG/VK)

In July, men injured at least 54 women, abused at least 11 girls and boys, and harassed 13 women. Men forced 64 women into sex work.

Men killed 170 women in the first seven months of 2026.

The deaths of at least 39 women and eight children in July were suspicious cases where it could not be definitively determined whether they were gender-based.

Femicide

Men killed at least 28 women in July. Last year, the number was 32 for the same month.

Men killed 12 women because they wanted to break up with them or because the women did not want to reconcile. The excuses given by the men who killed two women out of jealousy—that they had killed 14 women—was not reported in the press.

Twenty women were killed by their husbands, boyfriends, or former fiancés; six by men who were their sons or relatives; one by a neighbor; and one by her son-in-law.

Men killed 20 women inside their homes and eight outside their homes.

Men killed 14 women with firearms and eight women with bladed weapons. Men strangled three women and beat two women to death. Information on how men killed one woman was not reported in the media.

Murder solved in July

In connection with the death of Ece Naz Macit (18), who was shot in the head at a home in Kocaeli where she was with friends—a case listed as a suspicious death in bianet’s June report—the friends who were taken into custody—S.C.G. (19) and Y.O. (19), both male, and A.A. (17), a female minor—have been arrested. The investigation is ongoing.

In Gaziantep, Saniye Yaşar (61), a woman found shot in the head at her home—a case listed in bianet’s June record of male violence as an unsolved murder—was determined to have been killed by Ö.M. (24), a building superintendent. The man was arrested. The investigation is ongoing.

In Hatay, the body of Selbi U. (32), a woman who had been missing since 2012, was found in an orange grove. It was determined that she was killed by H.U., the wife of the man who participated in the murder of her husband’s father in 2011, and a man named Y.T., and then buried in the orange grove. In connection with the incident, a woman named H.U., a man named Y.T., and a person named O.Ç. were arrested on charges of “premeditated murder.” The investigation is ongoing.

Child murder

Men killed at least one child in July 2026. Last year, the number was five during the same month.

A child was killed by his father.

Harassment

In July, men harassed at least 13 women. Last year, the number was 39 for the same month. Two of the women harassed by men had come to Turkey as tourists.

Men harassed 13 women outside their homes.

The identities of the men who harassed one woman—a driver—one woman—a politician—two women—friends—and nine other women were not reported.

Sexual assault/rape

One rape case was reported in the press in July.

Child abuse

Men abused at least 11 girls and boys in July. Last year, the number was eight during the same month.

The men abused four children at home and seven children outside the home, in places such as schools and parks.

Three children were abused by their fathers, one by a friend of their father, two by relatives, and one by a tailor. The identity of the man who abused four children was not reported in the media.

Violence/injury

Men injured at least 54 women in July. Last year, the number was 85 for the same month.

At least four women were taken to the hospital with injuries.

Thirty-six women were injured by their husbands, ex-husbands, or boyfriends; two by their sons; one by a neighbor; one by a building superintendent; one by a clerk; one by a police officer; one by a former soccer player; and one by a politician. The identities of the men who injured 10 women were not reported in the press.

Men injured at least 26 women because they “did not want to reconcile or wanted to break up.” The reasons men gave for injuring 28 women were not reported in the media.

Men injured 34 women inside their homes and 20 women outside their homes.

Men beat 41 women, injured five women with firearms, and injured six women with sharp objects. Men set fire to one woman’s home and another woman’s car.

Forced sex work

In July, men forced at least 64 women into sex work. Last year, the number was 74 for the same month. Children were also among those forced into sex work.

(EMK/VK)

The implementation of these provisions will be subject to the official verification of the group's dissolution by the National Security Council. 

The framework bill, officialle named the “Law on Strengthening National Solidarity and Social Integration,” was submitted to parliament with the signatures of 360 lawmakers from six political parties, indicating a broad coalition in support of the initiative.

Bahçeli calls for release of Öcalan, Demirtaş as ‘Kurdish peace law’ heads to parliament

5 August 2026

Scope of the law

The bill covers allegations of founding, leading or joining the PKK/, knowingly assisting the group, disseminating its propaganda and committing offenses as part of its activities. It also covers terrorism-financing offenses committed for the organization’s benefit.

Intentional killings committed as part of the group’s activities would be excluded.

The bill would also exclude offenses committed before Jun 1, 2005, that carry life imprisonment or aggravated life imprisonment.

Bahçeli proposes formal status for Öcalan to guide PKK dissolution

18 May 2026

Investigations and trials involving offenses punishable by up to 15 years in prison would be deferred for five years. Proceedings involving heavier sentences, including life imprisonment, would be deferred for 10 years.

Courts could lift detention and judicial supervision measures in deferred cases when the legal conditions are met. I

If the deferral period passes without a new offense, prosecutors would close investigations and courts would dismiss pending cases.

Prison sentences totaling up to 15 years would also be deferred for five years. Longer sentences, including life and aggravated life imprisonment, would be deferred for 10 years. A sentence would be considered served if the person committed no offense during that period.

Parliament committee votes to meet imprisoned PKK leader in major step for peace process

21 November 2025

Oversight 

A board chaired by the vice president would oversee implementation. Its members would include the justice, foreign, interior, defense ministers and senior presidential, intelligence and national security officials.

Parliament would also establish a 17-member monitoring commission.

Applicants would have six months to submit written requests after the National Security Council’s decision is published in the Official Gazette.

PKK further withdraws forces from frontlines in Kurdistan region

17 November 2025

Background 

The peace process began in Oct 2024, when Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) leader Devlet Bahçeli proposed granting imprisoned PKK leader Abdullah Öcalan the “right to hope” in return for dissolving the group.

Öcalan called on the PKK to disarm in Feb 2025. The organization held a congress in May and decided to dissolve itself.

A parliamentary commission established in the second half of 2025 later worked on the process’s legal framework.

Bahçeli today also called for the release of Öcalan and former pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) leader Selahattin Demirtaş. (FY/VK)

The crash occurred on the D-100 highway near Sefaköy as the bus stopped to pick up and drop off passengers.

The driver and two passengers were trapped inside the car. Firefighters removed them from the vehicle, but all three died at the hospital despite medical intervention. Passengers were identified as Gökhan Gaş, 35, and Nazlı Cesur, 28, while the identity of the driver is yet to be determined.

Police temporarily closed the Edirne-bound lanes due to the crash while emergency crews worked in the area.

The car and the bus were removed from the scene. Crews cleaned and sanded the road before reopening it to traffic.

İstanbul Electric Tram and Tunnel Company (İETT), a municipality-run public transport subsidiary, said it is investigating the incident. 

“May God have mercy on those who lost their lives. We extend our condolences to their families and loved ones," it said.

Metro train derails in İstanbul, three hospitalized

19 June 2026

(VK)

He called for the release of Abdullah Öcalan, the imprisoned leader of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), and Selahattin Demirtaş, a Kurdish political leader who has been imprisoned for 10 years.

“Selahattin Demirtaş should return home, the two Ahmets should return to office, and Öcalan should be granted the right to hope,” Bahçeli told reporters in Ankara. “I regularly speak with Selahattin Demirtaş through his lawyers and ask how he is doing,” he added.

The "Ahmets" he mentioned are Mardin Metropolitan Mayor Ahmet Türk and İstanbul’s Esenyurt district mayor Ahmet Özer. Both are members of the pro-Kurdish Peoples' Equality and Democracy (DEM) Party and were removed from office over "terrorism-related" cases against them.

Bahçeli proposes formal status for Öcalan to guide PKK dissolution

18 May 2026

Framework law

Bahçeli’s remarks came as a framework law on the Kurdish peace process was expected to be submitted to parliament today. Although its contents have not been disclosed, the legislation is intended to place the nearly two-year process on a legal footing.

The bill reportedly includes provisions covering the return and reintegration of PKK members and the release of political prisoners.

Turkey’s National Security Council and intelligence agencies would determine whether the PKK had fully laid down its arms, according to media reports. Once disarmament was confirmed, the PKK would legally be classified as an organization that had ceased to exist and would no longer officially be designated a terrorist organization.

What is in Turkey's proposed Kurdish peace process framework law?

2 July 2026

The process began in Oct 2024, when Bahçeli proposed allowing Öcalan to benefit from the “right to hope” in exchange for dissolving the PKK.

Öcalan called on the group to disarm in Feb 2025. The PKK held a congress three months after this call and decided to dissolve itself following 40 years of armed insurgency.

A parliamentary commission spent the second half of 2025 preparing the legal framework for the process.

PKK leader Öcalan issues new message on anniversary of disarmament call

27 February 2026

(VK)

The allegations concern the Republican People's Party's (CHP) 2023 party congress, where Özel was elected leader, ending Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu’s 14-year tenure, and the 2024 local elections, where the CHP emerged as the leading party under Özel.

Prosecutors requesting permission to investigate an MP doesn't mean they face an imminent threat of being prosecuted, as Özel already has several such requests against him, but the investigation is notable because it is linked to recent events that led Özel to leave the CHP and establish a new party.

In a written statement, the prosecutor's office alleged that Özel accepted bribes from then-Uşak Mayor Özkan Yalım “in exchange for committing an offense” related to the leadership election congress. It also accused him of taking bribes from Antalya Mayor Muhittin Böcek in return for allowing him to seek reelection in 2024.

MP Ağbaba was the intermediary in the alleged bribery process, according to the statement.

A court declared the congress in question null in May, removing Özel as the head of the CHP and reinstating Kılıçdaroğlu. While the case remains under appeal, Özel founded the New Party last month, bringing in 90 of the 135 CHP deputies. The New Party formally gained the main opposition status after it became the second-largest party represented in parliament.

Court removes leadership of Turkey's main opposition party

21 May 2026

Turkey’s main opposition party officially splits as Özel declares New Party

24 July 2026

What will happen now?

The prosecutor's office has submitted summaries of proceedings regarding Özel and Ağbaba to the Justice Ministry. The ministry must forward them to parliament before lawmakers can vote on whether to remove the two MPs’ immunity and clear the way for prosecution.

Turkey’s lawmakers have immunity from prosecution while in office. Lifting it requires a simple majority in parliament and the ruling bloc holds enough seats.

This legal action targeting Özel comes amid a broader crackdown on the opposition since early 2025, which has seen dozens of mayors arrested, the opposition movement split, and several mayors switch to President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s ruling party.

Thirty-one opposition mayors removed from office since 2024 elections

2 April 2026

A brief history of politician transfers in Turkey

19 September 2025

(VK)

The Afşin-Elbistan plants have long been at the center of controversy over the air pollution they have caused in the region and their failure to comply with environmental regulations.

Maraş is already one of the provinces with the highest air pollution in Turkey. Environmental groups also link the plants to premature deaths and widespread health problems in the area.

With a combined installed capacity of 2,800 megawatts, 1,400 megawatts each at the A and B plants, the facilities are among Turkey’s largest coal-fired plants.

Maraş coal-fired plant expansion could lead to ‘1,900 premature deaths'

8 July 2024

The ministry and the company asked the Council of State, the highest administrative court, to overturn a ruling by the Kahramanmaraş 4th Administrative Court, which canceled the expansion of the plant.

The project would add two units with a combined capacity of 688 megawatts to the plant. The ministry issued a favorable Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) decision for the project on Dec 27, 2024.

Greenpeace Turkey, local residents, the Elbistan and Nurhak municipalities, the Turkish Medical Association (TTB) and the TEMA Foundation filed lawsuits challenging the decision. The administrative court canceled the approval in July 2026.

STUDY BY GREENPEACE AND CREA

Two towns from Turkey among top five places with highest sulphur dioxide pollution

8 October 2020

The court found that the EIA report failed to adequately assess the project’s effects on human health, farmland, water resources and the local ecosystem.

It also said the report did not sufficiently examine the cumulative effects of increased coal production, dust emissions, the hydrogeological consequences of dewatering or potential health risks.

Ministry says EIA complied with regulations

The ministry and Çelikler Holding appealed the cancellation of the EIA . Notably, the petition submitted by the ministry carried the COP31 Presidency logo, as Turkey will host and preside the summit in November.

The ministry argued that the court issued its ruling without examining its objections to the expert reports. It said some of the experts’ findings lacked scientific and technical grounds.

However, after the parties objected to the initial report, the court requested a supplementary assessment from the same panel. The additional report, dated Feb 4, 2026, reaffirmed the original findings.

Four workers injured at Afşin-Elbistan thermal plant after ash cap opens

8 December 2025

The ministry also argued that the new units served the public interest by supporting energy supply security.

Its petition described the project as “an operation that will reduce the investment burden on the public and help ensure energy supply security.”

“Supplying energy from economical, environmentally responsible and secure sources, and encouraging investments capable of meeting growing energy demand, can be achieved by establishing a sound balance between conservation and use in the relationship between the environment and energy, within the framework of sustainable development,” the ministry said.

“This balance is maintained through the implementation of regulations governing the administrative and technical procedures and principles of the environmental impact assessment process. The project’s potential adverse environmental effects, together with the measures to be taken, were examined in detail during the EIA process.”

Plant already fails to meet environmental requirements

A separate expert report was disclosed on Jul 13 in a lawsuit seeking the cancellation of the environmental permit and license for Unit 4, which remains operational.

The report found that the plant failed to meet even the minimum technical requirements of its Environmental Permit and License Certificate regarding air emissions.

It described the shortcomings as “structural and continuous” and said the measures taken were “inadequate and unsuitable” under national and international standards.

Maraş thermal plant linked to thousands of deaths 'still running without filters'

15 October 2025

Company disputes scientific basis of expert reports

The Afşin Elbistan Elektrik Üretim ve Ticaret A.Ş. company, a Çelikler Holding subsidiary, argued in its appeal that the expert reports cited by the court were “based on assumptions” and did not follow scientific methods.

The company said the court had issued an “incomplete and erroneous ruling without considering its objections.”

It said the AERMOD system had been used for air quality modeling and that emissions calculations complied with regulations.

GREENPEACE REPORT

Maraş: Air pollution up to 10 times above limit values in coal plant impact areas

25 December 2020

The company also said the health protection zone outlined in the EIA report had been determined through cumulative assessments and dust and noise modeling.

It argued that the new units would use “advanced technology” and keep emissions below legal limits.

The company also maintained that engineering controls, administrative measures and medical monitoring would be sufficient to prevent risks involving occupational illnesses, public health and agriculture.

Greenpeace points to contradiction with COP31 role

Greenpeace Turkey climate and energy campaigner Emel Türker Alpay said the government’s insistence on expanding a coal-fired power plant that had received unfavorable expert assessments contradicted its COP31 role.

“Turkey is the president and host of this year’s COP31 climate summit,” Alpay said. “COP31 President Murat Kurum frequently emphasizes that this will be an ‘implementation COP.’”

“This means taking steps to implement the agreement reached at COP28 to ‘transition away from fossil fuels.’ Canceling new coal-fired power plant projects should be among the first of those steps.”

“Yet a petition carrying the COP31 Presidency logo is now being used to challenge the cancellation of two additional units that expert reports have found do not serve the public interest,” she said.

“This directly exposes the contradiction between rhetoric and action. It also shows the continuation of a paradigm based not on an ‘implementation COP,’ but on a ‘COP of inconsistencies.’”

Alpay said the appeal was being pursued even though an expert report had found that the plant’s existing units could not meet current legal limits.

“We expect the court to stand by its decision,” she said.

Plant was shut down in 2020 over missing filters

Coal-fired power plants have operated in the Afşin-Elbistan region for about 40 years. Local residents and environmental organizations have long campaigned against their effects on air quality, public health, farmland and water resources.

In 2020, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan vetoed legislation backed by the Justice and Development Party (AKP), ruling party, that would have delayed requirements for coal plants to install flue gas filters.

After the legislation failed to take effect, the filters became mandatory as of Jan 1, 2020.

Coal-fired plants reopen: Engineers cast doubt on minister's statement that 'obligations fulfilled'

17 June 2020

The Afşin-Elbistan plant was among the facilities shut down during that period. It resumed operations shortly afterward after pledging to install flue gas treatment and ash filtration systems.

The plant completed the work only six years later.

The outcome of the dispute over the new units will affect not only energy investment in the region, but also Turkey’s coal policy and the consistency of its climate messaging ahead of COP31. (HA/VK)

The Bakırköy Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office in İstanbul opened the investigation ex officio after a clip from the interview circulated on social media. 

In the video on journalist Emel Özuğurlu's channel, the journalist points to Gerede’s limited use of accessories and asks her to show the necklace. Gerede says it is a “portable vibrator” with several vibration settings.

When Özuğurlu asks why she wears it around her neck, Gerede replies, “Because sometimes I feel my sexual urges increase. You can use this anytime. You can go to the toilet and do it, or you can do it while driving.”

Gerede was taken into custody after the investigation was announced and were later detained with an international travel ban after she was questioned by prosecutors.

Social media personality Merve Taşkın placed under house arrest over ‘obscene’ Valentine’s Day post

17 February 2025

Expanding use of obscenity charges

Obscenity investigations involving public figures have become increasingly frequent in Turkey in recent years. Such investigations initially targeted adult content creators but authorities now began to apply such charges to non-explicit content.

For example, an obscenity investigation was opened last year over an age-restricted concert by the girl band Manifest. Last month, influencer Fatma Soydaş, who wears a headscarf, was placed in pretrial detention for "disseminating obscene material" authorities decided that she produced "sexually suggestive" content.

Also, queer singer Mabel Matiz stood trial earlier this year for their song about a romantic relationship between two people and was eventually acquitted.

Turkey expands ‘obscenity’ investigations to musicians as 'girl band' given travel ban

10 September 2025

Article 226 of the Turkish Penal Code prohibits the publication of obscene content through the media. The law covers "general obscenity" and "obscenity involving children" but does not provide a specific definition of obscene material.

Publishing or facilitating the publication of obscene images, writing or speech is punishable by six months to three years in prison and a judicial fine of up to 5,000 days. (NÖ/VK)

Serdar Denktaş, a member of the Gökova Ecology Assembly in Muğla, told bianet that the commercialization of coastal areas is alienating residents from their own communities by turning beaches into exclusive spaces accessible only for higher-income people:

“We feel and experience our shared living spaces shrinking by the day. Nearly all the coastal areas that we used freely for years, and whose status as public spaces was supposedly protected by the Constitution and the Coastal Law, have now been privatized. We can no longer use these places, and we feel increasingly alienated from the town where we live.”

Coastal preservation movements rise in Greece, Turkey against commercialization

10 August 2023

Criminal complaints

Denktaş noted that the years-long campaign in Akyaka had achieved tangible results. He recalled that activists had been acquitted in previous trials and had reopened occupied areas to the public:

“At the Akyaka Forest Camp, an area of the coast that had been fenced off and turned into a ‘beach club’ was returned to public use by a court ruling after our campaign. The ‘Forest Cafe’ established by the Ula Municipality in the Forest Camp area, along with the surrounding fences, was removed. Two lawsuits filed by Akyaka residents against unlawful occupations in the Forest Camp are still ongoing.

“We filed 17 separate criminal complaints with the Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office over coastal occupations we identified at several locations, including Kadın Azmağı, Akçapınar Beach, Akyaka Forest Camp and Akyaka Public Beach. We have also launched a new effort concerning the occupations in the Maden Pier area.”

Protesters face harassment

Denktaş cleimd that business owners resorted to pressure and provocation during protests, using people with ties to them disguised as customers:

“Business owners generally claim that their customers are disturbed by our protests and that we are disrupting their peace. For example, people who lie on sun loungers pretending to be customers, but who are actually connected to the business owners, may harass protesters.”

Abuse of public use quotas

Denktaş said exceptions in coastal regulations and the 50 percent public-use quota legitimized commercialization. He listed their demands for a lasting solution:

“Under the Coastal Law, the public interest must be the guiding principle in all arrangements concerning the coast, and coastal areas must be made fully available for free public use. Municipalities must provide basic facilities such as showers, toilets and shaded areas free of charge.

"Sun loungers and businesses should operate not on the shoreline, but at their licensed premises farther inland. Allowing 50 percent of the coast to remain freely accessible means taking the other 50 percent away from the public and commercializing it. The entire coastline should be freely accessible.”

(FY/VK)

The İstanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office announced yesterday that it had launched an ex officio investigation into Özkök over his remarks made during a YouTube broadcast.

Appearing on journalist Bahar Feyzan’s channel on Jul 31, the 79-year-old argued that Turkey’s current political system had been built around Erdoğan’s personality and therefore could not survive beyond him:

“These days will pass. As a student, I witnessed firsthand how Franco’s regime collapsed in Spain. Franco’s 30-year dictatorship disappeared overnight. The regime changed the very night he died, the very night!

“No one should think regimes like this can continue forever. They cannot. Today’s regime in Turkey has been designed around Tayyip Erdoğan’s personality, and it functions only through his personality. There is no second person who could carry this regime forward in Turkey, and there cannot be for a long time.

“After all, our president is 72 years old. Seventy-two is not that old, he may have years ahead of him, but eventually age catches up with everyone. I know that because I’m living it myself.

“That’s why everyone needs to stop and think. I believe that if justice worked better in Turkey today, if human rights and meritocracy functioned properly, and if there were greater media freedom, President Erdoğan would actually have a much better chance of being re-elected.”

After clips from the interview circulated widely on social media, the prosecutor’s office announced yesterday that it had opened an ex officio investigation.

BIA Media Monitoring Reports

13 December 2024

During the 1990s and 2000s, Özkök was one of the country’s most influential journalists as editor-in-chief of Hürriyet, then Turkey’s largest newspaper.

His prime years coincided with an era of unstable coalition governments in the 1990s, when political parties were weaker and the mainstream media wielded considerable influence over politics.

He stepped down as editor-in-chief of Hürriyet in 2009 but continued writing columns until 2021.

In a 2024 interview with journalist Hasan Basri Akdemir on his YouTube channel, Özkök admitted that "I'm not a dissident" and that "I made my career as a journalist who has been close to the ruling power."

'Insulting Erdoğan': Nearly 10,000 people stood trial in a year, including 290 children

21 July 2021

AKP spokesperson denounces Özkök

Ömer Çelik, spokesperson for Erdoğan's ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP), criticized Özkök’s remarks in a written statement today, emphasizing that Erdoğan is a democratically elected leader:

“Comparing our president, one of the world’s leaders with the highest democratic legitimacy, to a dictator who committed crimes against humanity reflects intellectual and moral bankruptcy.

“We fought our democratic struggle against this mindset during the most difficult times, and we will continue to do so.

“This same mindset also claims that ‘there is no such party as the AK Party.’ That is nothing more than the wishful thinking of a decayed mentality. Anyone who wants to learn the truth should go out into the streets, say the same thing, and experience the response firsthand.

“These rotten statements are null and void.” (VK)

Annual consumer inflation stood at 31.75%, while prices have increased by 19.86% since the start o the year.

The 12-month average, which sets the rent increase rate, was 31.90%.

The İstanbul Chamber of Commerce (İTO), which tracks price changes in Turkey’s largest city, reported monthly inflation of 2.06% and annual inflation of 35.20%.

Inflation record under Şimşek

Mehmet Şimşek was appointed treasury and finance minister in June 2023 following the presidential elections, once again taking a role in the country's economy administration after two spells in the late 2000s and 2010s.

The inflation rate stood at 38.21% when he took office.

His appointment was widely seen as a shift toward more orthodox economic policies to move away from President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s “low interest rate-low inflation” theory. After taking office, he launched a campaign to reduce inflation.

However, the inflation has fallen by only 6.46 percentage points in the three years and one month since Şimşek took office. The decline was neither steady nor uninterrupted, despite tight monetary policy and high interest rates. The Central Bank's policy rate currently stands at 37%, slightly above the inflation.

Turkey to unveil tax incentives to boost foreign currency inflows

22 November 2023

Turkey’s new public spending cuts may affect healthcare, education services, warns economist

13 May 2024

Food and housing inflation exceed headline rate

Price increases in essential spending categories, which account for a large share of household budgets, exceeded the general inflation rate.

Annual inflation reached 37.53% for food and nonalcoholic beverages. Prices for housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels increased 40.32%, while transportation costs rose 30.83%.

Amid Iran war, transport prices jump over 4.5% in Turkey in a month

3 April 2026

Food and nonalcoholic beverages made the largest contribution to annual inflation, adding 8.94 percentage points. Transportation contributed 5.22 points, while housing added 5.21 points.

Together, the three essential spending categories accounted for 19.37 percentage points of the annual inflation rate.

Turkey ranks fourth globally in food inflation

15 May 2026

Also, TurkStat contnued not publishing its item-level consumer basket price list since Apr 4, 2022, despite a court ruling requiring it to do so.

Transportation posts largest monthly increase

Transportation recorded the largest monthly price increase in July, rising 2.59%.

Prices for housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels increased 2.25%, while food and nonalcoholic beverages rose 1.61%.

Turkey raises natural gas prices, marking 150% increase in 16 months

2 July 2025

Transportation contributed 0.44 percentage points to monthly inflation. Food added 0.40 points, while housing contributed 0.27 points.

The three categories therefore accounted for 1.11 percentage points of the overall monthly inflation rate of 1.78%.

Prices rose in 117 subcategories

TurkStat’s subcategory data also showed that price increases were spread across much of the economy. Prices rose in 117 of the 174 subcategories covered by the index.

Prices declined in 50 subcategories and remained unchanged in seven.

Health prices lead increases in İstanbul

İTO data showed that health spending recorded the strongest monthly increase in İstanbul, with a 9.77% increase from the previous month. Transportation followed with a 4.42% increase, while communication costs rose 3.69%.

Publicly administered price adjustments for some products and services contributed to the increases in these three categories.

Clothing and footwear was the only main spending category in which prices declined. (HA/VK)

In 2024, the UN adopted July 11 as the International Day of Reflection and Commemoration of the 1995 Genocide in Srebrenica. With the adoption of this resolution, the General Assembly made the genocide committed in Srebrenica a subject of international justice. At the same time, facing this dark chapter of history and the political denial by the parties behind these massacres must be addressed while victims still await justice. Thousands of families of victims of the Srebrenica genocide continue to be denied justice, truth, and reparation, as the world marks the anniversary of the genocide that left more than 8,000 people dead, and more than 1,000 victims remain missing.

The Srebrenica genocide, one of the worst crimes committed on European soil after the Second World War, must be assessed as a serious warning of potential violence if the world fails to act in the face of atrocities.

The genocide

The conflict in Bosnia and Herzegovina was the most violent fighting after the breakup of the former Yugoslavia. Throughout the conflict, the three major ethnic groups in the region, the Bosnian Serbs, Bosnian Muslims, and Bosnian Croats, struggled to gain territorial control. In eastern Bosnia, at Srebrenica, violence targeted primarily Bosnian Muslims as Bosnian Serb forces sought to establish ethnically homogeneous territories.

Amid the conflict in the Balkans during the 1990s, Srebrenica was identified as a 'safe area' by the UN for civilians fleeing fighting between Bosnian government and separatist Serb forces. On July 11, 1995, Serb forces under the command of Bosnian Serb General Ratko Mladić attacked Srebrenica and conducted a 10-day operation of ethnic cleansing. More than 8,000 people were killed, mainly Bosnian Muslim men and boys.

Both the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY) and the International Court of Justice (ICJ) concluded that the mass killings committed in Srebrenica in 1995, during the wider conflict in Bosnia and Herzegovina (1992–1995), constituted genocide.

The ICTY indicted 161 individuals for war crimes. Ninety were sentenced, including 62 Bosnian Serbs, while 13 cases were referred to national jurisdictions. Leading figures such as Radovan Karadžić (2016) and Ratko Mladić (2017) were sentenced to 40 years and life imprisonment, respectively, on grounds of genocide.

Srebrenica survivors still searching for remains of buried relatives

Exhumations of victims buried at various gravesites displayed the scale of violence committed by Serbs in Srebrenica. In the course of trials, the courts reviewed evidence from 21 mass graves exhumed by the ICTY between 1996 and 2000. Of these, 14 were designated as 'primary gravesites', where the victims' bodies were buried immediately after they were killed. Bosnian Serb forces subsequently altered eight of these primary gravesites in an attempt to cover up their crimes. Over several weeks in Sep and Oct 1995, they removed bodies from primary graves and reburied them in secondary gravesites. Seven of the 21 mass graves were classified as secondary burial sites.

Determining the exact number of bodies in each mass grave proved nearly impossible, as Bosnian Serb forces dismembered many remains using heavy machinery to exhume and rebury them. As a result, the remains of a single victim could be found in separate mass graves. According to experts who worked at the gravesites, the minimum number of bodies contained in all discovered graves was 2,028. In Aug 2001, prosecutors identified 18 other mass graves that had not yet been exhumed. The 2,028 exhumed bodies do not represent the total number of Bosnian Muslim men and boys killed at Srebrenica.

On the other hand, as the identifying DNA analysis the remains of victims seen as a very slow process, many families choose to postpone the burials ceremonies, with the hope that more matching bones would be recovered to complete their loved ones' remains. And, under these conditions, observed that every year on July 11, newly identified and verified remains are laid to rest at the Srebrenica-Potočari Memorial Cemetery with annual Collective Funerals. ( https://www.fidh.org/en/issues/international-justice/srebrenica-25-years-after-the-genocide-victims-are-still-fighting-for)

Conclusion 

Systemic denial is seen as the official position of high-ranking politicians in Serbia and the Republika Srpska entity, as they continue to publicly deny the genocide and often glorify convicted war criminals. Human rights organizations, including Amnesty International and the Council of Europe, warn that this persistent political denial and revisionism deeply divides communities and blocks efforts to achieve justice as well as legal and social reparations.

More than 1,000 victims remain missing, and search operations continue decades later. DNA identification processes move slowly, leaving families waiting years to bury their loved ones.

Many lower-ranking participants and co-conspirators still live freely without facing trial. Local courts in Bosnia and Herzegovina struggle with a massive backlog of unresolved war crimes cases due to a lack of resources and political will.

The 1995 genocide in Srebrenica, alongside the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda, shaped the development of international criminal justice and the global resolve to prevent genocide. Today, efforts to establish accountability and search for the missing remain essential to identify victims and preserve testimonies, ensuring justice for all victims and upholding the promise of "never again." (NT/VK)

The closure will affect only crossings from the European to the Asian side, while the opposite direction will remain open.

The bridge is among the three bridges linking the two continents in the metropolis, alongside the Eurasia Tunnel underwater crossing.

The closure is for the filming of an episode of the docuseries "Asırlık Gece" (A Night Worth of a Century), broadcast by the state broadcaster TRT. The series is about the 2016 coup attempt, and its first episode was aired on Jul 15, the 10th anniversary of the putsch.

The bridge became a symbolic site on the night of the coup attempt, as some officers and cadets blocked it to traffic at the beginning of the putsch. Dozens of people protesting the coup were later killed there by gunfire from helicopters, and the bridge was subsequently renamed to honor them.

Traffic flow will be diverted to alternative routes as part of the arrangement implemented to ensure filming can be carried out safely, the governor's office said. It urged drivers to plan their travel accordingly to avoid any inconvenience. (VK)

With her 2025 EP Wyrd, Fasouli embraces the sounds of the Levant, drawing inspiration from a wide range of genres—from Anatolian psychedelia to Brazilian tropicália. Viewing music as much more than a stage performance, she actively joins protests on the streets of Athens, standing in solidarity with Palestine and speaking out against genocide and racism.

In our interview, we explore her storytelling that breaks free from algorithmic formulas, what rebetiko means today, and the housing crisis in Athens. We also discuss how she uses her songs to stand up against patriarchal violence and the struggles of remaining an independent musician in the age of digital platforms.

Jazz training, laiko, rebetiko, entehno, Mediterranean and Levant influences... Instead of settling into a single identity, your music feels like a journey moving through different sounds. What does this polyphony and cross-genre transition mean to you? 

It means that I’m alive - I’m still observing life and human beings, getting inspired from their story and sound. I agree that genres help the algorithm categorise and define music in general, but telling stories as a singer is such a different art. It’s another craftsmanship. And this is what I do. I don’t expect from the audience to come to listen to something specific- my concerts are an indulging experience and I hope that people will laugh, cry, dance and go home light as a feather. This polyphony means that I’m never going to get bored doing music, that I have the ability to see the beauty in everything. Making art with respect and elegance is going to be the always the first and ultimate goal.

You mentioned that you first heard the Arabic song “Ma Baquad Balaki” from the Wyrd EP from Palestinian artist Rola Azar, and that bringing it to the stage was a conscious choice. At a time when Arabic is so often marginalized in the Western world, what does it mean to you to bring this language to the stage in Athens?

Indeed, I heard this song from Rola Azar in a “Songs from Palestine” playlist - and for a long time I didn’t even realise it was originally from Lebanon. (Ignorance thanks to the algorithm-always). I was mesmerised by her voice, her rhythm and I wanted to listen to it all day. Then the realisation that I’m listening to a voice that maybe is not even safe in Gaza because of the genocide, haunted me. I wanted to add it to my repertoire until all the Palestinians are safe and sound to sing it in their land. Athens has a very big Arabic community - and we leave apart from each other. Different neighbourhoods, different restaurants, different schools. Yet, as kid growing up in Athens, I can only admit that I recognise Athens is an immigrant city. We like to ignore this a lot. I’m using my art to bridge that gap, because what makes this city so beautiful is its mixture of cultures and essences. I prefer this memory than remembering this place as a tourist attraction full of hotels and pools.

The rebetiko and laiko traditions you draw upon carry the memory of migration, poverty, exile, and those left behind. Considering the crises that Athens, and Europe in general, are going through today, what do these old songs mean for today's stage and audience?

Rebetiko and Laiko have always been in the spotlight in Greece - I believe somehow it’s like a museum gem, people prioritize it and treat it with a lot of respect. I would be happier if a lot more new music was created based on this tradition instead of re-performing the old stuff. I believe these songs are strong enough to united us once more against any circumstance because they’re honest and genuine. They have human qualities. But if we’re also honest to ourselves we are going to make music that’s also going to last and inspire the next generations. And this is my ultimate goal. 

In my previous interview with Spiros Grammenos, we talked about “Kamia Moni” (No Woman Is Alone), which you performed together. This time, I want to focus on the song through your own voice. As a female artist, what does it feel like to voice this rebellion on stage against femicides and patriarchal violence? 

This song feels like my imaginary weapon. It gave me the strength to stand in every rural area that we go for tour and admit my biggest trauma on stage. I call the crowd to shout it with me and they really do. You can feel the urge of the people to make the patriarchal violence and oppression to stop, to change the way we exist and I’m very proud to be observing it. We still have a long way to go, but art is indeed shaping consciousness, and if I’m currently inspiring any femininity in Greece stand for its rights and future - I will be consistent. 

We know Athens has been hit by a severe housing crisis and gentrification in recent years. Looking back from your album O Kosmos Sou (Your World) to the present day, how does this harsh transformation of Athens’ streets reflect on your music and the human stories you tell? 

Well, to be honest I really didn’t realise the music turn until you asked - I mean that I never had to describe it with words so far. Indeed Kosmos sou was an “urban” manifest - it praised the city, the life of it, the loneliness of it before and during Covid. But I we all moved away from that feeling lately. You can help it when your favorite bar is now one more fine dining experience, your old rented apartment is now part of an Airbnb complex run by international companies, digital nomads are making four or five times the amount of money you make. And then we recorded “Kipos” by Antonis Apergis. The album that praised land, trees, soil, dignity, love, marriage, values. And the sound of was more folklore and primitive. Back to where all humanity is supposed to start. If we want to survive this transformation- this the recipe. Be truthful to each other and any form of life. And art is again reminding us that.

Today, music mostly circulates through digital platforms, algorithms, and the pressure for visibility. As an independent musician, how does this dynamic affect your musical decisions, your release routine, or the direct bond you build with your listeners?

I still move by instinct and by what I have the need to address at this time. And I’m working very hard to not be distracted by the fact that I have to post all the time new videos and new content. For me everything has to be meaningful, and that is why I have a strong bond with my listeners. I do it the old way and it feels like I’m addressing friends and not a mass. I’m currently mostly worried about the distribution situationship. Platforms formed a new way of releasing music that force us lose a large amount of music rights we deserve - sometimes stricter than when the CD business existed. And force more and more intermediaries in order for you to have access to them. For me being an independent artist is a situationship that doesn’t exist anymore. And this is what scares me the most. Internet is not that free space it used to be- as I we say in Greece the “pie” has already been shared with multinational corporation and you need them to exist - again.

We often see you standing up with your voice and presence at Palestine solidarity protests and concerts in the streets of Athens. How do you view an artist's responsibility to support the Palestinian struggle directly in the streets with their own presence? Do you think the music scene is speaking up strongly enough? 

Responsibility for me is a hard word - art is a form of expression and it’s based on instinct. You’re free to be as you want to be. My art is human-centric, it has justice and humanity as a priority, I’m here to sing pain, happiness, peace and love. Thus, I can’t move forward without speaking up about Palestine and the Genocide that is taking place - not even far from where we live. But who I am to judge anyone for not doing it? It’s all about which side are you on now - it’s us and them- I don’t judge but I differ - I separate myself from moderation. I wish people were less afraid. 

Your new song “Πυρ Γυνή και Θάλασσα” (Fire, Woman, and Sea) subverts the ancient, patriarchal line attributed to Menander, which places women alongside nature’s most destructive elements—fire and sea—and labels them the “third great evil.” In the song, you turn this phrase into a chorus of strength, anger, and liberation. How did the idea come about to translate this phrase into a vibrant musical language for female rage, one that can become a shared voice on stage? 

I really didn’t get this phrase in the first place - it sounded like a joke to me and I wanted to re-establish it to common sense as a fierce statement. What’s wrong with the sea and fire? Most probably you underestimate them, that’s it. The basic idea came from a movie soundtrack I had to compose - the final scene shows the protagonist kicking away her toxic boyfriend and throwing his clothes from the balcony. It was fierce but also a bit comic, and that’s why I wanted to make a song that has humour and also a lot of truth in it. I really didn’t expect to see how many people found themselves inside this song. It’s my summer hit and I love it. 

Finally, I wonder how your rich musical universe, which holds so many different cultures and protests, feeds itself. What is playing in Nefeli Fasouli’s headphones these days? Who are the voices that excite you and nurture your music? 

Haha, you’re right my headphones really ask themselves what’s wrong with this girl? The past two years I’m obsessed with the 70s, Anatolian Psychedelia, Groovy Folklore stuff, Brazilian Tropicalia, and Jazz. I love Altın Gün, Kit Sebastian, Gaye Su Akyol, Arthur Verocai and I’m definitely open to recommendations.

(DS/VC/VK)

We spoke with Judith Butler, one of the world’s most influential contemporary thinkers, about mourning, survival and collective life under persistent violence. Drawing on their work on precarity, assembly and political grief, Butler reflects on how people preserve one another, build solidarity and sustain the possibility of a shared future amid repression, economic hardship and the threat of war.

Butler also argues that resisting war is an international responsibility, particularly for those outside Iran, warning that imperial expansion would deepen exploitation and create a new class of deprived workers rather than delivering freedom.

In Iran, many of those who have lost their lives in recent years were young people whose lives had barely begun to take shape. At certain moments, death has appeared not as a singular shock, but as an ongoing condition rather than an event. How do you think about mourning in such contexts—when what is lost is not only individual lives, but entire futures, and when grief itself risks exhaustion?

In situations of war but also in the ongoing state violence against the people, the scene of loss pervades the sense of past, present, and future. Those who have already died deserve to be mourned, but in the very time that is takes to mourn, new losses take place. So one is mourning and suffering fresh loss at the same time, which means that there is no proper time for mourning. Perhaps mourning becomes coextensive with life. In addition, one anticipates fresh loss in the future, since the killing and maiming is not stopping. So one tries to stop to mourn those one has loved and lost only to suffer a fresh violence and to anticipate, with ready rage and grief, the losses to come. It is important to remember that mourning is a collective activity, and collectives can renew one another through such gatherings. And the gathering is a form of equality, but also a way of honoring loss, and uplifting each other – or it should be!

In several of your works, you argue that political life emerges not only through demands or programs, but through bodies appearing together—often in moments of vulnerability, loss, or grief. In contexts like Iran, where collective gathering is dangerous and political organization is repeatedly disrupted, how can shared mourning give rise to a sense of political “we” without hardening into exclusion, retribution, or new forms of violence?

In Iran, you are struggling for a new economy, a new democracy free of imperial interventions and monarchic nostalgia. The people have a right to decent wages, food, freedom from political violence, and access to a public sphere in order precisely to determine their own political future and to discover, apart from any fear of retribution, who the people are and who they wish to be. So, outside the public sphere, in the networks that you have, is a nascent public sphere. You are still connected and engaging in collaborative action when you can, and each time that happens, a potential public sphere is illuminated. That you hold in each other’s hearts, I am sure.

For many people in Iran, everyday life unfolds under ongoing insecurity, unresolved trauma, and economic strain. Survival is not a temporary moment but a prolonged condition—yet it remains entangled with the desire for change or resolution. How can we understand agency in such contexts, where staying alive and preserving meaning coexist with, and often strain against, the repeated deferral of political and social resolution?

Staying alive is its own accomplishment under such dire conditions, under economic conditions that intensify deprivation and precarity, and under political and military conditions in which the people are regularly targeted by armed forces willing to maim and kill. Staying alive is not a simple act, since one stays alive for others, and one is helping others to stay alive. So if the state devalues the life of the people, the people can value each other’s life, through networks of care and support, but also of courage and persistence.

Can we think of persistence as part of 'staying alive'? And how do forms of collectivity emerge to help keep each other alive?

That is already a form of world-building. But the people can only build that world if the US and imperial powers leave it to the Iranian people to decide their political future and if the state relinquishes its power to exploit and deprive its people of a living wage. To take on such a struggle, one must keep each other alive – it is a way of laying a foundation for the future struggle.

With the possibility of war constantly looming—whether through regional escalation or foreign intervention—many people live in a condition of suspended time. How does ethical life take shape when planning, attachment, and commitment must all be made under the constant possibility that the future may be abruptly withdrawn?

My understanding is that you are living through this condition together, those of you who are still living. So the task may be to make sure you are not isolated in your anxiety, but gaining and giving strength to each other. Powers across the world should oppose the prospect of war, and that is an international obligation at this time. But there is so much wanton self-interest among the imperial powers, so much shameless imperial expansion into markets that will only produce a new class of deprived workers, that we have to fight at that level as well. Those of us who are outside need to assume that responsibility.

Many Iranians describe language itself as risky—to speak can be dangerous, but silence also carries loss.

Yes, to speak carries many risks if you will be punished intensely for having spoken. So it is important to find ways to speak, or to express oneself in ways that also secure your lives. It is an impossible bind, I can imagine. But it is necessary to “get out the word” and for many people outside of Iran to stand for the Iranian people, without supporting Trump or those who seek a restoration of anti-democratic powers.

What ethical challenges arise around speech when every available position seems compromised?

Ethics does not just address the question, “what ought I to do?” It also inquires into the world of shared values, our obligations to one another, the norms according to which we would like to build our common life. So even in everyday interactions, moments of care and solicitude are part of the making of ethical life. There is my anxiety and fear, but there is yours, and the person we do not know suffers it as well. Hence, it is a shared condition, and that allows to re-approach anxiety and fear as a social condition. We can then ask the critical question: what are these powers that instill in us such fear, and to insist that no one should have to live in a world in mortal fear, silenced by a punitive and repressive state power. Because that anxiety is social, and because it is part of a strategy of the state to control the people, we can take up both an ethical and a political position. To live in perpetual fear and mourning is not a good way to live; it is not a good life. And Iranians deserve a good life – this is an ethical principle. And those powers that undermine the power of the people to decide the course of their lives free of terror, they must be opposed by means that may or may not be public, but should engage all of us who live in this world, and want the freedom to live without fear, hunger, and endless mourning.

If you had the opportunity to send a direct message to the people of Iran, what would you want to say to them?

I do not know how to speak to an entire people! What I can say is that the global community outside of Iran should not hesitate to condemn the brutal violence of the Iranian state against its people. But as we do, we should make clear that we ally neither with the threats and imperial expansionism of Trump nor with those who demand a return to the days of the Shah. We stand with the people's struggle for freedom and to live without the fear of repression. (SAR/VK)