The political climate in Turkey is reaching a boiling point with the jailing of Ekrem İmamoğlu, the mayor of Istanbul and a key challenger to President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. İmamoğlu, a prominent figure in the opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP), has been widely seen as a serious contender for the presidency. His arrest marks yet another episode in Erdoğan’s strategy of consolidating power. At the core of this strategy are two internal objectives—sidelining political opponents and maintaining Kurdish suppression. These domestic goals accompany broader regional ambitions, with geopolitical implications for the United States and Israel.
Today, the very tools of repression once used against the Kurds are now being turned against the Kemalists themselves, exposing the cyclical nature of Turkey’s political repression and authoritarianism.
İmamoğlu has been charged with “establishing and leading a criminal organization, accepting bribes, misconduct in office, unlawfully recording personal data and bid rigging.” Prosecutors have even sought to charge him with “aiding an armed terrorist organization,” a reference to the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), which has been engaged in a decades-long conflict with the Turkish state over its policies of oppression against the Kurds. Although the court ruled that this particular charge was “not deemed necessary at this stage,” the broader strategy is clear: in Turkey, anyone who challenges the ruling system can easily be accused of terrorism in order to be side-lined from power.
İmamoğlu’s case is particularly ironic given the history of his party. Since the founding of modern Turkey in 1923 by Mustefa Kemal (Atatürk), the CHP institutionalized the denial of Kurdistan and suppression of Kurdish identity—a policy that has been carried forward by every ruling party since. Today, the very tools of repression once used against the Kurds are now being turned against the Kemalists themselves, exposing the cyclical nature of Turkey’s political repression and authoritarianism.
What is unfolding is not a fight for democracy but a conflict among Turks to dominate the state apparatus. Despite their internal rivalry, both the CHP and the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP)—along with their Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) ally—share one common reality: they need the Kurdish vote to win the next general election in 2028 and cement their grip on power. This places the Kurds and the pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Equality and Democracy Party (DEM) in a precarious position, as both factions seek to manipulate Kurdish political aspirations for their own gain.
Turkey is classified as a “brown country” with both democratic and authoritarian features, but democracy, legality, and citizenship rights have effectively disappeared from the Kurdish regions in southeastern Turkey. Since the 1920s, successive governments have maintained a state of emergency under different guises, all of which have been used to systematically suppress Kurdish rights.
Since the 1920s, successive governments have maintained a state of emergency under different guises, all of which have been used to systematically suppress Kurdish rights.
One of Erdoğan’s latest moves is his attempt to co-opt the Kurdish Newroz (New Year)—a significant cultural and political event for Kurds. He plans to propose that Newroz be celebrated collectively by the “Turkic world” under the auspices of the “Organization of Turkic States” in May 2025. This is a calculated attempt to erase Kurdish identity from a festival that was once banned by the Turkish state until 1992, resulting in the loss of many lives, and still leading to the ongoing detention and imprisonment of those who celebrate it.
The effects of Turkey’s Kurdish policy are felt beyond its borders. A day after Erdoğan’s speech on March 21, this erasure mindset became evident in the Kurdistani region of Urmîyeh (Urmia) in western Iran, where Kurds form the majority. Emboldened by Turkish and Azerbaijani-backed Azeri pan-nationalist mobs—with implicit support from the Iranian regime—they gathered in Urmîyeh after a mass Kurdish Newroz celebration, calling for massacres against the Kurds and continuing their campaign of Kurdish denial. To Erdoğan, Turkey’s “spiritual geography” spans “from Syria to Gaza, from Aleppo to Tabriz [in Iran], from Mosul to Jerusalem.”
Erdoğan and the AKP—backed by the ultranationalist Nationalist Movement Party (MHP)—are pursuing a dual strategy: systematically eliminating political rivals while continuing Turkey’s longstanding policy of denying Kurdish rights. This is evident in their hollow “peace” outreach—without any concrete step—toward the Kurds in Turkey, as well as their approach to Abdullah Öcalan, the imprisoned PKK leader, and his call for the disarmament of Kurdish groups including the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). Erdoğan manipulates these dynamics to advance his agenda in Syria, aiming to disarm the Kurds and keep the autonomous Kurdish stronghold of Rojava (Western) Kurdistan off the new Middle East map. Simultaneously, he supports the new government in Damascus to further expand Turkey’s influence in the region.
Washington must carefully navigate the need to counter Erdoğan’s increasingly authoritarian rule while supporting its Kurdish allies in the region and curbing Turkey’s expansionist agenda.
Washington’s continued backing of the SDF—an anti-ISIS coalition led by General Mazloum Abdi—has placed it in direct opposition to Turkey’s expansionist ambitions. However, Turkey views the SDF, and its components YPG and YPJ, as extensions of the PKK and has consistently pressured Washington to withdraw its support. Since 2018, Turkey has launched multiple cross-border aggressions into Syria, occupying and Turkifying Kurdish portions of it. Erdoğan’s strategic goal is clear: to weaken Kurdish political and military strength. By doing so, he aims to eliminate a Kurdish entity with the potential for independence and statehood that could challenge Turkish authority within its borders, which hold the largest Kurdish population—over 25 million—primarily in the southeast.
Beyond Syria, Erdoğan’s maneuvers extend into the broader geopolitical landscape. In the Middle East, he has sought to position Turkey as a dominant power, leveraging historical Ottoman influence to appeal to Sunni populations. This includes escalating tensions with Israel by expanding Turkey’s military presence inside post-Assad Syria, stepping in to fill the void left by Russia and Iran. Amid rising security tensions between Europe and the United States, Turkey seeks to project an image of transformation—not through conventional broad partnerships but by asserting itself as a regional power center. Erdoğan’s rhetoric has shifted toward confrontation, particularly after the October 7 attacks on Israel, as he appeals to his Islamist base and expresses support for Hamas against Israel. This rhetoric has intensified following Israel’s call to support the Kurds as a natural ally in Syria.
Turkey’s political battle exposes a deeper truth about control—both domestically and abroad. For the United States, Turkey’s internal power struggles, broader regional ambitions, and Kurdish policy present a strategic challenge. Washington must carefully navigate the need to counter Erdoğan’s increasingly authoritarian rule while supporting its Kurdish allies in the region and curbing Turkey’s expansionist agenda.
