The Levant Files

Turkey’s main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) has been thrust into one of the most turbulent episodes in its history after a “nullity” (butlan) ruling and a police raid on its Ankara headquarters triggered a three‑day political shockwave, columnist Barış Terkoğlu writes in the daily Cumhuriyet. In his 25 May piece , Terkoğlu argues that the operation against the founding party of the republic marks a new stage in President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s unconstrained rule. According to Terkoğlu, the butlan ruling on CHP’s internal processes was not an isolated judicial act but part of a broader political design to render the party ungovernable rather than simply change its leadership. Police stormed the CHP headquarters, fired gas into its corridors and in effect pushed the party into a prolonged period of internal strife between its grassroots and leadership. Terkoğlu notes that although senior CHP figures had expected a ruling, they were caught unprepared for the speed and scope o...

Pakistan’s strategic partnership with China is entering a new phase of deeper financial integration and expanded provincial-level cooperation, according to a report in Dawn. The article notes that as both countries mark 75 years of diplomatic ties, Islamabad is increasingly turning to Chinese capital markets and sub‑national partnerships to secure economic stability and diversify away from traditional Western financing channels. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif is currently on a visit to China that focuses heavily on trade, industrial cooperation, financial connectivity and the future direction of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). According to Pakistan’s Foreign Office, the trip is expected to “strengthen and deepen political trust, strategic coordination” and consolidate the long-standing friendship between the two countries through high-level meetings with President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Qiang. A key development highlighted by Dawn is Pakistan’s recent issuance of a three...

Iran says it is not close to any agreement with Washington, while U.S. President Donald Trump insists any deal with Tehran must be “big and meaningful” or there will be no deal at all. The latest developments also show growing Israeli concern that a possible accord would ignore Iran’s missile program and regional proxy network. Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Ismail Baghaei said no one can claim the sides are nearing a deal, arguing that repeated shifts in U.S. positions are undermining talks. He also said Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi’s trip to New York for a Security Council meeting was canceled because of a visa problem. Trump, posting on Truth Social, dismissed critics of a possible U.S.-Iran agreement and said any new deal would avoid repeating what he called the “disaster” of the 2015 nuclear accord. He said the previous deal, signed under Barack Obama, gave Iran a direct path toward nuclear weapons, while his administration would not accept a similar arrangement. Regional A...

With 99 per cent of ballots counted in Sunday’s House of Representatives elections in the Republic of Cyprus, the centre‑right Democratic Rally (DISY) has held on to first place with 27.2 per cent, maintaining its 17 seats despite a slight 0.8‑point fall in its share compared with 2021. Turnout rose to 66.47 per cent, up 2.5 points on the previous election, with 11,542 more people voting than in 2021. Abstention remains high at 33.6 per cent, while some 58,000 votes are effectively unrepresented in the new House, having gone to parties that failed to secure a seat. According to the final figures from the Cyprus News Agency, valid votes number 253,210 (97.8 per cent), with 4,210 invalid ballots (1.63 per cent) and 1,477 blank ballots (0.57 per cent). In total, six parties manage to enter the new 56‑member House, while EDEK, DIPA and the Greens – along with Volt and the Active Citizens – United Hunters Movement – remain outside parliament. DISY leads with 27.2 per cent and keeps its 17 s...

Kıbrıs Yayın Kurumunun (KRYK) pazar akşamı yayımladığı ilk çıkış anketine göre 2026 Kıbrıs Temsilciler Meclisi seçimlerinde geleneksel iki büyük parti DISY ile AKEL'in omuz omuza yarıştığı görülüyor. Örneklemin yüzde 80'ini kapsayan ve saat 18.00'de açıklanan ankette DISY yüzde 22,5-25,5, AKEL ise yüzde 21-24 oranında yer alıyor. Aşırı sağcı ELAM'ın yüzde 10,5-12,5 ile üçüncü sıraya yerleştiği tahmin ediliyor; bu sonuç, partinin yeni Temsilciler Meclisindeki konumunu güçlendireceğini öngören seçim öncesi anketleri doğrular nitelikte. DIKO ise yüzde 8-10 civarında seyrediyor; bu tablo, dördüncü sıra için çetin bir mücadeleye işaret ederken Cumhurbaşkanı Nikos Christodoulides'i destekleyen merkez güçler üzerindeki baskıyı da gözler önüne seriyor. Çıkış anketi, analistlerin seçim öncesinde öngördüğü parçalanmayı doğrular biçimde yeni siyasi oluşumların da güçlü bir çıkış yaptığını ortaya koyuyor. ALMA yüzde 4,5-5,5 ile tahmin edilirken Direct Democracy yüzde 5,5-7,5 ar...

Police forces have stormed and surrounded the headquarters of Turkey’s main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) in Ankara, using tear gas and plastic bullets to disperse crowds resisting the enforcement of a court ruling that annulled the party’s last congress and reinstated former leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu. The dramatic scenes outside the building mark a dangerous escalation in what CHP leader Özgür Özel and his supporters describe as a “judicial coup” aimed at seizing control of the country’s oldest opposition party through the courts and the police. In the early hours around the CHP’s Ankara headquarters, police units were heavily deployed after the Ankara appeals court declared the party’s 38th Congress invalid, overturning Özel’s 2023 election and ordering Kılıçdaroğlu restored as chairman. As tensions climbed, Ankara’s Governor’s Office announced that it had instructed security forces to implement the court’s decision, framing the operation as the simple execution of a bin...

After months of war, blockades, and back-channel diplomacy, the United States and Iran appear closer than ever to a negotiated end to their conflict — yet a final agreement continues to slip just out of reach, as both sides acknowledge progress while flagging unresolved disputes that could still derail the process. The latest round of talks, mediated by Pakistan and with China playing a supporting role, has produced what sources describe as a draft framework circulating between negotiating teams. Both delegations have characterized recent sessions as "constructive," a word that in diplomatic parlance signals movement without commitment. The Optimism — With Caveats President Donald Trump told reporters he believes the two sides are "getting a lot closer," though he put the odds of a final deal at only 50/50. Iranian officials echoed that cautious tone, with Tehran's negotiators publicly cautioning that "significant gaps remain" even as they acknowledged...

An Iranian state-affiliated outlet, Nournews, reports that Iran and the United States are edging closer to a 60‑day preliminary understanding that would link an end to ongoing regional hostilities with the partial unfreezing of Iran’s blocked assets and changes to the security regime in the Strait of Hormuz. According to Nournews, Iranian officials have conditioned any initial memorandum of understanding on the immediate release of at least part of Tehran’s frozen funds in a way that allows Iran practical access to those resources, citing past instances where Western parties failed to honor similar commitments. The reported framework would also seek a full lifting of the maritime blockade on Iran within 30 days, with Iranian authorities insisting that any changes to shipping conditions in the Strait of Hormuz remain tied to Washington’s implementation of its obligations. While some Western media have suggested a rapid return of the strait to pre‑war conditions, the article says the tex...

Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu’s latest video message on X, reported by Yetkin Report on 20 May 2026, has shaken Turkish political circles by hinting at a possible court‑ordered return to the Republican People’s Party (CHP) leadership and a subsequent “cleansing” of the current team around Özgür Özel and Ekrem İmamoğlu. In his midday video, Kılıçdaroğlu framed his intervention as a call for “clean politics,” warning that allowing the CHP to be “contaminated” would amount to a betrayal of Atatürk’s legacy. He stressed that the party is an “ancient plane tree” that knows how to “purify itself” and conduct “inner reckoning” when necessary. The video was quickly amplified within the party: 19 CHP MPs shared it in the first hours, a number that later rose to 22, underscoring that Kılıçdaroğlu still commands a visible faction inside the organisation. At the same time, social media reactions were largely critical, with many users posting harsh comments despite the show of parliamentary support. Hint of “...