PKK

Protesters in the Turkish cities of Izmir, Istanbul, and the capital of Ankara clashed with police on Friday as protests against the arrest of Istanbul mayor Ekrem Imamoglu grew larger and more intense.

The Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), a Kurdish separatist terror group that has been fighting a violent insurgency against the Turkish government since 1984, announced a unilateral ceasefire on Saturday.

Outlawed Kurdish terrorists on Saturday declared a ceasefire with Turkey following a landmark call by jailed PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan asking the group to disband and end more than four decades of armed struggle.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan warned Kurdish militias in Syria on Wednesday to either lay down their arms or be “buried.” On the same day, the Turkish military said it killed 21 Kurdish militants in northern Syria and Iraq – including members of the People’s Defense Units (YPG), the leading Syrian Kurdish force allied with the United States against the Islamic State.

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan is urging governments to rescind their terrorist designations of Syrian insurgents Hayat Tahrir al-Sham.

The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), a U.S.-backed Syrian militia group led by Syrian Kurdish forces, said on Tuesday that its fighters clashed with Syrian government troops and took control of seven villages near Deir al-Zor, potentially opening a new front against the regime of dictator Bashar Assad.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erodgan on Thursday invited President-elect Donald Trump to visit his country and discuss various topics of mutual interest, including the war in Gaza, which Erdogan wants Trump to “stop” by applying more pressure against Israel.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Friday he would oppose cooperation between the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and Israel unless a “comprehensive, sustainable peace is established in Palestine.”

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Sunday he plans to invite Syrian dictator Bashar Assad to visit Ankara and mend relations that were strained by Turkey’s support for rebel groups during the long and bloody Syrian civil war.

Kurdish citizens protested across Turkey after a court sentenced former HDP leader Selahattin Demirtas to 42 years in prison.

Turkish election officials on Tuesday refused to allow pro-Kurdish Mayor-Elect Abdullah Zeydan take office in the city of Van. Instead, the national government tried to install a member of authoritarian President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s party as mayor, even though Zeydan defeated him by almost 30 points in the election. The decision was reversed by Turkey’s High Election Board on Wednesday after unrest spread across southeastern Turkey.

Dozens of men clashed as a riot broke out at a Paris airport amid efforts to deport a Kurdish activist from the country.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan appears to be preparing for another military incursion into the border regions of Syria and Iraq to fight the PKK, a violent Kurdish separatist group seen by Erdogan’s government as the primary threat to Turkey’s security.

Turkey carried out airstrikes in Iraq and Syria on Saturday after an attack on a Turkish military base in Iraq killed nine Turkish soldiers.

The government of Turkey announced a bombing campaign on Sunday consisting of airstrikes on 20 alleged strategic positions within the borders of Iraq, a response to a suicide attack against the Turkish General Directorate of Security in Ankara this weekend.

President Joe Biden met with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on the sidelines of the NATO summit in Vilnius, Lithuania on Tuesday and praised the authoritarian Turkish leader for having the “courage” to stop blocking Sweden from joining the alliance.

Turkish nationalist presidential candidate Sinan Ogan, who finished in third place with 5.2 percent of the vote in the May 14 presidential election, announced on Monday that he will throw his support behind incumbent President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in the May 28 runoff election.

Turkey on Tuesday announced the arrest of 110 individuals for allegedly financing, colluding with, or recruiting for the PKK, a banned Kurdish separatist organization.

Syrian dictator Bashar Assad during a visit to Moscow this week wholeheartedly supported Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, offering his government’s official recognition of the phony “independent republics” Russia carved out of eastern Ukraine, and said he would like more Russian forces stationed permanently in Syria.

Turkey’s fractious opposition parties united on Monday behind a single candidate, Kemal Kilicdaroglu of the Republican People’s Party (CHP).

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Tuesday declared a three-month state of emergency in ten provinces due to Monday’s devastating earthquakes. The focus on reconstruction did not prevent Turkish forces from bombing Kurdish militia positions in Syria.

The elderly suspect in a Paris mass shooting that sparked violent riots before Christmas developed a “hatred of foreigners” after a home invasion in 2016, according to reports. 

A growing number of Syrian Kurds are going to Europe on a winding course that includes Lebanon, Egypt, Libya, Algeria, and a boat to Spain.

Gen. Mazloum Abdi – top military commander for the Kurdish-led, U.S.-allied Syrian Defense Forces (SDF) – said on Wednesday his alliance must suspend operations against the resurgent Islamic State in order to prepare for a potentially massive Turkish invasion that could put hundreds of American troops in Syria at risk.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Tuesday that Turkey’s airstrikes against Kurdish militia in Syria would soon be augmented by a major ground invasion. Meanwhile, Iran is launching missiles against Kurds living in the mountains of Iraq and using ground forces to crush protests in Iranian Kurdistan.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s address to the 77th U.N. General Assembly in New York City on Tuesday was largely dedicated to his contention that nearly all problems can be solved through “dialogue,” and Turkey is indispensable to every dialogue in the Middle East and Asia.

The government of the Czech Republic, which currently holds the rotating presidency of the European Union, has condemned threats from Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan as Turkey has also claimed Kurdish terrorists have been training in Greece. President Erdogan made

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Sunday threatened to launch another military incursion into Syria, without warning, if he deems it necessary to neutralize Kurdish militia groups classified by Turkey as terrorists.

Turkey released a list of demands in return for approving Sweden’s NATO bid, including halting support of groups Turkey calls terrorists.

Turkish forces operating in Syria reportedly shelled two villages on Sunday, coming perilously close to positions held by Russian troops. Turkey is a member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), which is currently in a state of highly elevated tensions with Russia over its invasion of Ukraine.

The Turkish government muted its criticism of China’s horrendous abuse of the Uyghur Muslims on Wednesday, as Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu conveyed some vague “views, expectations and sensitivities” to Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi but stressed Turkey’s full respect for China’s “sovereignty.”

Supporters of the far-left terrorist Kurdistan Worker’s Party (PKK) have attacked several Turkish associations across France this week, according to claims from Turkish media.

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg told the European Parliament on Monday he has “serious concerns” about the Turkish government’s behavior on various issues, “ranging from the eastern Mediterranean, the Turkish decision to buy the Russian air defense system S-400 or related to democratic rights in Turkey.”

Turkey summoned Iranian Ambassador Mohammed Farazmand in Ankara on Sunday to complain about Iran’s criticism of Turkish military operations in Iraq. The complaint concerned demands by another Iranian ambassador, Iraj Masjedi in Baghdad, for Turkey to suspend operations and remove all of its forces from Iraqi territory.

Islamist Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan warned the United States in remarks Monday to stop “siding with terrorists” for Washington’s continued support of Syrian Kurdish groups instrumental to defeating the Islamic State.

Yazidi groups reported Turkish airstrikes on Tuesday in Sinjar, an Iraqi city once at the heart of the nation’s Yazidi population devastated in 2014 by the Islamic State’s attempted genocide of its residents.