Intense Crackdowns in Turkiye Leading Up to NATO Summit

Author: Aahana Nagwekar

July 1, 2026

HRRC condemns the recent arrests and raids in Turkiye, as they constitute a suppression of civil liberties. HRRC also urges Turkish authorities to take accountability and lift the restrictions on basic freedoms such as speech and expression.

A group of protesters in Turkiye. June 15, 2026 [Image Credit: Devrimci Parti Ankara İl Örgütü/X, WSWS]

Turkish authorities have gone to extreme lengths to crack down on civil liberties across the country in the lead-up to the NATO summit, which will take place in Ankara on July 7 and 8. Over the past few days, Turkish police have arrested activists, lawyers, and teachers, highlighting severe violations of basic human rights, including freedom of speech. Authorities have additionally misused terrorism laws to justify these arrests, claiming they were necessary to investigate ties to terrorist organizations, such as ISIS.  However, they have failed to produce evidence of alleged crimes or criminal activity. 

Benjamin Ward, deputy Europe and Central Asia director at Human Rights Watch (HRW), explained that “The misuse of terrorism laws to conduct mass arrests and silence people in the run-up to a NATO summit flies in the face of the founding values of the alliance.” He added that the authorities should immediately release those detained, and that NATO should insist that peaceful expression and assembly must be permitted around the summit.

Just one day before the arrests began, the Ankara Governor’s Office banned activities including displaying banners, distributing leaflets, and holding public assemblies and demonstrations from June 28 to July 10. The ban, justified as a precautionary measure to maintain security and order during the summit, is a clear violation of the freedom of expression. 

These actions are part of a broader pattern of repression. Turkish authorities have also recently ordered the blocking of X accounts belonging to LGBTQ+ and women's rights organizations, while the broader crackdown has coincided with far-reaching restrictions on the main political opposition party, Cumhuriyet Halk Partisi (CHP), the media, and freedom of expression in general. 

As Ward put it, clearing Ankara’s streets of potential protesters only further exposes the Turkish government's deepening repression, and Turkiye’s NATO allies should use their influence to urge the authorities to change course.

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Glossary

• Accountability – the state of being held at fault, liable, or answerable.

• Alleged – declared or stated to be as described; asserted.

• Civil Liberties – the freedom of a citizen to exercise customary rights, as of speech or assembly, without unwarranted or arbitrary interference by the government.

• Coincided – to occupy the same place in space, the same point or period in time, or the same relative position

• Crackdowns – a severe, often sudden increase in enforcement or action designed to stop specific activities

• Detained – to be kept under restraint or in custody.

• Freedom of Expression – the fundamental human right to seek, receive, and impart information and ideas through any media

• Freedom of Speech – the right of people to express their opinions publicly without governmental interference, subject to the laws against libel, incitement to violence or rebellion, etc.

• ISIS – a transnational Sunni jihadist militant organization and designated terrorist group

• Leaflets – a small flat or folded sheet of printed matter, as an advertisement or notice, usually intended for free distribution

• Precautionary – measure taken in advance to avert possible evil or to secure good results

• Raids – a sudden assault or attack, as upon something to be seized or suppressed.

• Repression – the act of keeping down or suppressing

• Violations – a breach of a law, rule, or promise