President Erdogan visited Iraq to sign security and development agreements and for more cooperation in the fight against Kurdish PKK militants in northern Iraq; Erdogan's last visit to Iraq was in 2011, when he was prime minister

Adana Mayor and eight other local politicians from the main opposition Republican People’s Party were released from prison; Karalar called for the release of other opposition mayors, including Istanbul's mayor and presidential candidate Ekrem Imamoglu

Turkish defense authorities said that there is no evidence of a mass influx of Iranians crossing the border despite a government crackdown on protesters in the neighboring country

The Yunus Emre Institute is preparing to launch an artificial intelligence-based Turkish language teaching platform in 2026, a move expected to significantly scale the global reach of Turkish-language education

Turkish civil society organizations affiliated with the National Will Platform have urged citizens to gather on Istanbul’s Galata Bridge on 1 January 2026 for a rally protesting the violence in Palestine and calling for an end to the raids