Turkey

Ankara shut an institution founded by religious conservatives and attacks tech companies in order to stop young Turks from accessing a free academic and media environment.

Turkey is standing in the wreckage of a foreign-policy adventure with no discernible strategy.

The Turkish president wants to turn Istanbul’s Hagia Sophia back into a mosque. Destroying its dual Orthodox-Islamic heritage would be a blow to religious pluralism and tolerance.

Ali Babacan promises he’s ready to take down Erdogan—but he might leave everything else in place.

Turkey’s economy is a mess, but its president won’t seek an IMF loan because the conditions would mean giving up his extensive patronage network.

Canan Kaftancioglu has fueled the rise of Turkey’s increasingly effective opposition—and earned the president’s ire.

European countries have suffered from the pandemic, but their southern and eastern neighbors are faring even worse—setting the stage for financial ruin, political instability, and a surge of refugees.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s battle with opposition local governments over who provides coronavirus relief is endangering the public.

Ankara’s finances were weak before the pandemic—but the combination of external debt, a public health crisis, and a president who chooses to protect his reputation rather than his people could spell disaster.

Governments around the world are banning fake news about the crisis—and cracking down on their critics while they’re at it.

None of the parties involved is serious about reaching a political settlement, meaning the conflict could kill many more this year.

By killing the Middle East’s sense of community, the region’s dictators have helped the pandemic on its death march.

The war in Idlib is a growing humanitarian crisis, a potential disaster for Ankara—and a problem that doesn’t bear on Washington.