Turkey has emerged as a critical node in Hamas’s global support network, providing the terrorist organization with sanctuary, financing, and operational infrastructure. Ankara hosts Hamas’s political leadership and has allowed the group to direct attacks against Israel from Turkish soil—a fact confirmed by both Israeli and U.S. intelligence officials. Far from a passive host, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has openly championed Hamas, calling it a legitimate resistance organization even as its operatives planned mass-casualty attacks from Turkish territory. With Iran’s financial and military power increasingly degraded by U.S. and Israeli military action, Turkey is rapidly filling the vacuum as the foremost state enabler of Hamas terrorism.
At the same time, Turkey’s conduct toward its NATO allies has grown increasingly confrontational. Ankara has harassed allied naval vessels, violated Greek and Cypriot airspace and maritime territory, blocked allied defense cooperation with Israel, and acquired Russian air defense systems in defiance of explicit U.S. warnings. The timeline below documents this record—a decades-long pattern of behavior that can no longer be dismissed as a series of isolated incidents.
| Anti-U.S., NATO, and Israel Actions and Statements | |
|---|---|
| Date | Event |
| April 2002 | Prime Minister Bülent Ecevit refers to Israeli policies during the Second Intifada as “genocidal.” |
| March 2003 | Turkish Parliament blocks U.S. troop deployment in the lead-up to the Iraq War; the authorization wins a 264-250 plurality but falls three votes short of the majority required under Turkish law. With 533 members present in the closed session, 267 votes were needed to pass. |
| June 2004 | Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, as prime minister, accuses Israel of “state terrorism.” |
| February 2006 | Senior AKP leadership, along with Erdoğan’s family, attend the premiere of a film depicting American Soldiers and Jewish doctors as organ-traffickers. |
| January 2009 | Erdoğan walks off the Davos stage after clashing with Israeli President Shimon Peres. |
| October 2009 | Turkey cancels joint NATO military exercises with Israel. |
| April 2009 | Erdoğan vetoes Anders Fogh Rasmussen’s NATO Secretary General appointment over the Jyllands-Posten Muhammad cartoons crisis; backs down only after Obama intervenes and Turkey wins EU Defence Agency membership as a concession. |
| May 2010 | A Turkey-based flotilla organized by the IHH attempts to break Israel’s Gaza blockade; Israel’s raid on the Mavi Marmara in international waters kills nine and ruptures Turkey-Israel ties. |
| June 2010 | Erdoğan says Israel’s Gaza flotilla raid showed “how good they are at killing people.” |
| September 2011 | Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Beşir Atalay threatens to sever EU ties over Cyprus’ presidency. |
| September 2011 | Turkey expels Israel’s ambassador and suspends military ties after Israel refuses to apologize for the 2010 Gaza flotilla raid, following the release of the UN Palmer Report. |
| June 2012 | Erdoğan accuses Israel of massacring Palestinians and calls Gaza world’s “largest open-air prison.” |
| February 2013 | Erdoğan labels Zionism a “crime against humanity.” |
| March 2013 | Erdoğan claims victory after Israel apologizes and agrees to compensate Mavi Marmara victims. |
| August 2013 | Erdoğan accuses Israel of orchestrating coup against Morsi. |
| July 2014 | Erdoğan declares that the actions of the IDF constituted “barbarism that surpasses Hitler.” |
| July 2014 | Erdoğan accuses Israel of “systematic genocide” of the Palestinians since 1948. |
| July 2014 | Erdoğan calls Israel a “terror state,” claiming the operation in Gaza was “creating a wave of terror.” |
| August 2014 | Erdoğan accuses Israel of deliberately killing Palestinian mothers, warning Israel would “drown in the blood it sheds.” |
| November 2014 | At an Organization of Islamic Cooperation committee meeting in Istanbul, Erdoğan tells Muslim states the West cannot be trusted: “They look like friends, but they want us dead, they like seeing our children die.” |
| July 2016 | Turkey cuts power to U.S. troops at İncirlik base following coup attempt. |
| July 2016 | Erdoğan accuses United States of “taking sides with the coup plotters,” pointing to its refusal to extradite Fethullah Gülen from Pennsylvania. Later, Erdogan never refuted claims that the U.S. was responsible. |
| October 2016 | Turkey detains Andrew Brunson, a U.S. citizen, holding him in captivity for over 2 years. |
| March 2017 | Erdoğan tells German officials their “practices are not different from the Nazi practices of the past” after Germany cancels pro-Erdoğan referendum rallies. |
| May 2017 | İlnur Çevik, an Erdoğan advisor, implies Turkey could attack U.S. soldiers in Syria. |
| June 2017 | Germany withdraws from İncirlik base after Turkey blocks German lawmakers from visiting. |
| September 2017 | Turkey purchases Russia’s S-400 air defenses for $2.5 billion. |
| January 2018 | Erdoğan threatens to “strangle” a planned U.S.-backed Kurdish border force in Syria “before it’s even born.”. |
| February 2018 | Erdoğan threatens U.S. forces in Syria with “Ottoman slap” and to “bury” them. |
| July 2019 | Turkey acquires Russian S-400s, prompting its removal from the F-35 program. |
| December 2019 | Erdoğan threatens closure of Incirlik base hosting U.S. nuclear arms. |
| December 2019 | Turkey threatens to block NATO’s Baltic and Poland defense plans unless allies backed Ankara against the YPG. |
| March 2020 | Erdoğan attempts to “blackmail” NATO allies with migrant flows. |
| June 2020 | France says Turkish navy harassed French ship on NATO mission. |
| August 2020 | Turkey violates international Libyan arms embargo and blocks NATO-EU enforcement. |
| September 2020 | After U.S. announces potential arms sales to Cyprus, Turkish foreign ministry vows “decisive counter steps.” |
| February 2021 | Interior Minister Süleyman Soylu asserts United States behind 2016 coup attempt; Erdoğan never took issue with this claim. |
| May 2021 | Erdoğan says Israel is a terrorist state that needs “strong lesson.” |
| March 2022 | Turkey refuses to join the West in sanctioning Russia following Russian invasion. |
| May 2022 | Turkey blocks Finland + Sweden from joining NATO for months. |
| October 2023 | U.S. downs Turkish drone as it approaches U.S. positions in Syria. |
| January 2024 | Turkey removes Israel from list of export destinations to discourage trade. |
| January 2024 | Erdoğan’s son, Bilal, links Hagia Sophia’s mosque conversion to “freedom for Jerusalem and Al-Aqsa.” |
| April 2024 | Communications Minister Fahrettin Altun says that “Israel needs to be fought with full solidarity.” |
| April 2024 | Erdoğan vows Israel will “pay” for its actions in Gaza. |
| April 2024 | Erdoğan states Israel is committing genocide and Benjamin Netanyahu “surpassed Hitler long ago.” |
| May 2024 | Turkey announces the suspension of all trade with Israel. |
| May 2024 | Erdoğan calls Netanyahu a “psychopath” and “vampire” who “feeds on blood.” |
| July 2024 | Turkey unilaterally blocks NATO cooperation with Israel. |
| July 2024 | Erdoğan implies that Turkey would invade Israel: “Just as we entered Karabakh, just like we entered Libya, we might do [something] similar to [Israel].” |
| August 2024 | Turkey joins South Africa’s genocide case against Israel at the International Court of Justice. |
| August 2024 | Erdoğan’s son, Bilal, states that “Israel is currently driven by a deviant ideology.” |
| September 2024 | Erdoğan calls for “alliance of Islamic countries” vs. “Israeli banditry and Israeli state terrorism.” |
| September 2024 | Erdoğan declares Turkey will “stand against the Israeli government no matter what the cost.” |
| November 2024 | Turkey denies Israeli President Isaac Herzog use of its airspace while flying to Azerbaijan. |
| November 2024 | Erdoğan urges Islamic countries to impose an arms embargo, end trade with, and isolate Israel. |
| December 2024 | Fidan warns Turkey may take “other measures” if Israel does not respect Syrian sovereignty. |
| January 2025 | Erdoğan says Israel must end aggressive actions in Syria or “there will be negative consequences.” |
| January 2025 | Erdoğan’s son Bilal tells tens of thousands of rallygoers “Gaza will emerge victorious.” |
| February 2025 | Erdoğan asserts that Israel is dragging the Middle East “toward blood and tears again.” |
| March 2025 | Erdoğan calls for Israel to be “destroyed and devastated.” |
| April 2025 | Foreign Minister Fidan says “we will not sit and watch” Israel’s “expansionist” actions in Syria. |
| August 2025 | Turkey restricts Israel’s use of its airspace; bans Israeli ships from Turkish ports. |
| November 2025 | Turkey issues arrest warrants for PM Netanyahu and 36 other senior Israeli officials. |
| June 2026 | Erdoğan argues Netanyahu is “following the path of Hitler.” |
| June 2026 | Erdoğan says Israeli actions in Syria and Lebanon threaten Turkey, warns of a “very strong” Turkish response. |
| June 2026 | Erdoğan states the “expansionist ideology called Zionism” threatens the globe. |
| July 2026 | Fidan calls Israel a “burden that humanity can no longer bear.” |
| July 2026 | Turkey’s foreign ministry accuses Israel of a “disinformation campaign” against the country. |
| July 2026 | Erdoğan accuses Israeli government of being “war-addicted.” |
| Support for Terrorist or Extremist Organizations | |
|---|---|
| Date | Event |
| January 2006 | Erdoğan urges international community to respect the election victory of Hamas in Gaza. |
| February 2006 | Erdoğan hosts then-Hamas Chairman Khaled Mashal. |
| May 2011 | Turkey’s Erdoğan states that “Hamas is a Political Party, not a terrorist group.” |
| August 2011 | Hamas begins to operate in Turkey after Syrian civil war. |
| October 2011 | Turkey accepts 11 of the 1,027 Palestinian prisoners released in the Gilad Shalit prisoner swap, welcomed at Ankara’s Esenboğa Airport by the Palestinian ambassador and Turkish foreign ministry officials. |
| January 2012 | Turkey reportedly agrees to send Hamas $300 million per year. |
| September 2012 | Erdoğan hosts Egyptian President Morsi and Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal as AKP congress guests of honor. |
| September 2012 | Erdoğan provides Morsi’s Muslim Brotherhood-affiliated government with a $1 billion aid package. |
| July 2013 | Muslim Brotherhood supporters in Egypt publicly thank Erdoğan for backing ousted President Morsi. |
| August 2013 | Erdoğan invents Muslim Brotherhood’s four-finger “Rabia” salute in solidarity with Morsi after Egypt’s Rabaa massacre — a gesture he says stands for “one nation, one flag, one homeland, one state” — and gives asylum to 1,500 Brotherhood members. |
| November 2013 | Jihadi smuggling route from Turkey into Syria identified. |
| 2014 | Turkey’s southern border becomes the primary transit corridor (“jihadist highway”) for ISIS foreign fighters — ~30,000 crossed in 2013 — while Turkish middlemen buy smuggled ISIS oil. |
| August 2014 | Yusuf al-Qaradawi, a Muslim Brotherhood spiritual leader, says Erdoğan is “current caliph of Muslims” and Istanbul is “the capital of the Islamic caliphate.” |
| August 2014 | Hamas commander Saleh al-Arouri, operating from a base in Turkey, claims responsibility for the June 2014 kidnapping and murder of three Israeli teens; the U.S. would designate him a Specially Designated Global Terrorist in 2015. |
| September 2014 | Erdoğan offers to host any Muslim Brotherhood members expelled from Qatar. |
| April 2015 | Erdoğan demands Morsi’s release. |
| April 2016 | Muslim Brotherhood leaders gather in Istanbul for an event titled “Thank you, Turkey.” |
| June 2016 | U.S. Intelligence Community reports Turkey funds al-Qaeda offshoot Jabhat al-Nusra. |
| February 2017 | Erdoğan claims the Muslim Brotherhood “is not an armed group, but … an ideological organization”; Brotherhood responds it “will never disappoint Erdoğan.” |
| December 2019 | A Daily Telegraph investigation reveals senior Hamas figures based in Turkey plotted attacks from Istanbul, including a plot to assassinate the mayor of Jerusalem. |
| February 2020 | Erdoğan hosts Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh at Istanbul’s Vahdettin Pavilion. |
| August 2020 | Turkey grants citizenship and passports to ~12 senior Hamas operatives in Istanbul; days later Erdoğan hosts Haniyeh, drawing a formal U.S. State Department objection. |
| December 2021 | Israeli officials allege hundreds of Hamas plots directed from Turkey. |
| July 2023 | Erdoğan hosts Hamas Chairman Ismail Haniyeh (alongside the PA’s Abbas) in Ankara, publicly stating “resistance” is the best way to “confront the (Israeli) occupation.” |
| October 2023 | Hamas leaders were reportedly in Istanbul when the Oct. 7 attack was launched, celebrating the assault before being asked to quietly leave. |
| October 2023 | Erdoğan says “Hamas is not a terrorist organization.” |
| October 2023 | Erdoğan threatens Israel that Turkey “may suddenly arrive at [its] door one night.”” |
| November 2023 | Erdoğan labels Israel a “terror state,” accuses it of “employing state terrorism,” and calls Hamas “resistance fighters.” |
| December 2023 | Certain Turkish tax loopholes and businesses fund Hamas, per a New York Times article. |
| March 2024 | Erdoğan states that Turkey “firmly backs” Hamas. |
| April 2024 | Erdoğan and Hamas Chairman Haniyeh meet in Istanbul. |
| April 2024 | Erdoğan says that “Hamas is exactly the same as the Kuva-i Milliye [National Forces]” that expelled foreign armies during Turkey’s war of independence. |
| May 2024 | Erdoğan reveals over 1,000 Hamas members receiving medical treatment in Turkey. |
| June 2024 | Shin Bet says it foiled Hamas terror plot directed from Turkey. |
| July 2024 | Erdoğan states Turkey may enter Gaza war on the side of Hamas. |
| November 2024 | 39 U.S. lawmakers express concern over Turkey’s Hamas support. |
| April 2025 | U.S. officials disclose Hamas has $200mn in Turkey-based assets. |
| March 2026 | Turkish intelligence chief İbrahim Kalın hosts Hamas political bureau in Istanbul. |
| Democratic Backsliding, Political Repression, and Human Rights Abuses | |
|---|---|
| Date | Event |
| July 2008 | Ergenekon trials begin; 17 life sentences ultimately handed to military officers, politicians, academics, and journalists. The case was later exposed as a frame-up built on fabricated evidence, and the convictions were overturned. |
| December 2009 | Turkey initiates police operations against Kurdistan Communities Union (KCK). |
| September 2012 | Nearly 300 military officers convicted of plotting a coup against the AKP government in politically-charged Ergenekon trials. |
| May 2013 | Police break up the Gezi Park and Taksim Square protests with tear gas and water cannon, sparking nationwide anti-government demonstrations; more than 8,000 people are injured by July 10. |
| March 2014 | Erdoğan blocks use of Twitter in Turkey. |
| September 2015 | Mob attacks Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) headquarters in Ankara; police do not intervene. |
| November 2015 | Government seizes 22 pro-HDP/Kurdish media outlets and companies. |
| July 2016 | Government purges 60,000 individuals and shutters 130+ media outlets following coup attempt. Testimonies highlight the number of false charges slapped on innocent civil servants. |
| November 2016 | Turkey detains elected HDP members of parliament, including co-leaders Selahattin Demirtaş and Figen Yüksekdağ, after stripping their parliamentary immunity; the European Court of Human Rights later finds they were detained without reasonable suspicion for a political purpose. |
| 2017 | Over 100,000 websites blocked in Turkey, including a high number of Kurdish-language websites and TV. |
| April 2017 | Turkey blocks access to Wikipedia, saying website was running “smear campaign.” |
| June 2017 | Erdoğan’s security detail attacks protesters in Washington, D.C. |
| 2018 | Turkey’s democracy rating slips from “Partly Free” to “Not Free,” according to Freedom House. |
| November 2019 | Turkey arrests three HDP district mayors in Mardin, bringing the total number of HDP mayors detained on terrorism-related charges since the March 2019 election to 16. |
| January 2024 | Turkish parliament strips Can Atalay, an opposition figure, of his seat in defiance of court ruling. |
| August 2024 | Reporters Without Borders finds that over Erdoğan’s decade as president, 131 journalists have been detained, 77 convicted of “insulting the president,”” and five killed, while over 85% of national media is now controlled by pro-government interests. |
| August 2024 | Turkey blocks Instagram for nine days after it removes condolence posts for Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh. |
| November 2024 | Government removes six opposition mayors, citing terrorism trials or investigations against them, which are viewed as politically motivated charges. |
| February 2025 | An Istanbul court orders the arrest of 10 senior CHP municipal officials across nine district municipalities on terrorism charges. |
| March 2025 | Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu is arrested on corruption and terrorism charges — widely viewed as politically motivated. |
| March 2025 | The Ankara Governor’s Office bans all protests for six days, while Izmir’s Governor’s Office imposes a four-day ban on demonstrations and press statements following İmamoğlu’s arrest. |
| March 2025 | Şişli Deputy Mayor Ebru Özdemir is arrested on terrorism charges amid the crackdown following İmamoğlu’s detention. |
| March 2025 | BBC correspondent Mark Lowen is deported from Turkey after being detained while covering protests over İmamoğlu’s arrest. |
| March 2025 | Turkey’s broadcasting regulator RTÜK imposes a 10-day blackout on pro-opposition Sözcü TV, citing its coverage of protests over İmamoğlu’s arrest. |
| June 2025 | Turkey’s Interior Ministry suspends five more CHP district mayors after their arrests on financial-crime charges. |
| July 2025 | Turkey detains three more CHP mayors on corruption charges; the CHP calls it an effort to undo the 2024 election results. |
| July 2025 | Police detain three Cumhuriyet reporters while they cover a CHP rally in Istanbul’s Saraçhane Square. |
| August 2025 | Beyoğlu Mayor İnan Güney of the CHP is removed from office in a corruption probe critics call part of the broader crackdown on opposition mayors. |
| September 2025 | Istanbul court annuls the Istanbul provincial congress, removes chair Özgür Çelik and his board, suspends 196 delegates, and installs a caretaker board, a move critics call a prelude to annulling the party’s national leadership. |
| September 2025 | Istanbul prosecutors order text. |
| September 2025 | Three-day blanket ban issued by Istanbul Governor, banning demonstrations. |
| September 2025 | A partial blackout was enacted for 21 hours, limiting social media and messaging. |
| May 2026 | Police storm Republican People’s Party (CHP) headquarters in Ankara. |
| July 2026 | Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office issues detention warrants for Izmit Mayor Fatma Kaplan Hürriyet and 30 other people, bringing the number of CHP-run municipalities targeted to 39 since 2024, with 26 incumbent mayors behind bars. |
| Revisionist Partnerships and Strategic Alignment | |
|---|---|
| Date | Event |
| April 2002 | Gen. Tuncer Kilinc said Turkey should turn from the West toward Russia and Iran. |
| May 2010 | Turkey and Brazil broker nuclear fuel-swap deal with Iran, opposing U.S.-backed sanctions push. |
| March 2012 | Turkey’s Halkbank starts gas-for-gold scheme with Iran, violating U.S. sanctions. |
| September 2013 | Turkey agrees to purchase China’s FD-2000 air defense system over U.S. Patriot missiles; Turkey cancelled the deal in 2015 under NATO pressure. |
| January 2014 | Erdoğan labels Tehran a “second home” during visit. |
| October 2016 | Turkey signs deal with Russia to build TurkStream pipeline. |
| April 2018 | Rosatom, Russia’s state-owned nuclear energy corporation, holds the ground-breaking ceremony for Turkey’s first nuclear power plant at Akkuyu. Under a build-own-operate model, Rosatom will own and operate the plant, with the first of four units expected online by late 2026 |
| December 2020 | China ratifies its 2017 extradition treaty with Turkey (signed on Erdoğan’s Belt-and-Road visit to Beijing), stoking fears of Uyghur deportations as Erdoğan mutes prior criticism of China’s Xinjiang policies. |
| June 2021 | Turkey’s central bank agrees with China to increase currency swap facility to $6 billion. |
| September 2023 | The U.S. sanctions five Turkey-based firms for supplying dual-use components used in Russian drones and missiles, as Turkey emerges as a leading hub for Russian sanctions evasion. |
| Military Aggression and Regional Power Projection | |
|---|---|
| Date | Event |
| 2010 | Turkey violates Greek airspace 1,239 times, according to Greek Ministry of Defense. |
| 2011 | Turkey violates Greek airspace 962 times. |
| 2012 | Turkey violates Greek airspace 646 times. |
| 2013 | Turkey violates Greek airspace 636 times. |
| 2014 | Turkey violates Greek airspace 2,244 times, a 250% increase from 2013, & violates Greek maritime territory 371 times. |
| 2015 | Turkey violates Greek airspace 1,779 times and maritime territory 299 times. |
| July 2015 | Turkish fighter jets breach Greek airspace 20 times in one day. |
| 2016 | Turkey violates Greek airspace 1,671 times & maritime territory 414 times. |
| August 2016 | Turkey launches Operation Euphrates Shield in Syria; at least 444 civilians ultimately killed. |
| 2017 | Turkey violates Greek airspace 3,317 times & Greek maritime territory 1,998 times, the latter a 382% increase over 2016. |
| July 2017 | Erdoğan threatens energy firms drilling off Cyprus; deploys a naval vessel to monitor operations. |
| 2018 | Turkey violates Greek airspace 3,705 times and maritime territory 1,479 times. |
| January 2018 | Text link Text. |
| February 2018 | Turkish warships block passage of an Italian vessel involved in Cypriot gas exploration. |
| February 2018 | Greek and Turkish warships collide in Greek waters. |
| 2019 | Turkey violates Greek airspace 4,813 times & violates maritime territory 2,203 times. |
| October 2019 | Turkey launches Operation Peace Spring into Syria, leading to clashes with U.S.-backed Kurdish forces. Nearly 300,000 people are displaced as a result. |
| 2020 | Turkey violates Greek airspace 4,605 times and maritime territory 2,203 times. |
| January 2020 | Turkey openly enters the Libyan Civil War in support of the GNA. |
| August 2020 | Greek + Turkish warships collide amid Turkish efforts to contest Greece’s maritime claims. |
| September 2020 | Turkey begins aiding Azerbaijan’s campaign against Armenia. |
| November 2020 | Turkish troops deploy to Azerbaijan. |
| 2021 | Turkey violates Greek airspace 2,744 times and maritime territory 2,085 times. |
| 2022 | Turkey violates Greek airspace an unprecedented 11,258 times, a 310% increase over 2021, and maritime territory 1,581 times. |
| November 2022 | Turkeybegins Operation Claw-Sword to target U.S.-backed Kurdish forces in Iraq and Syria; 364 Kurdish fighters are killed in a week as a result of Turkish airstrikes. |
| December 2022 | Erdoğan threatens missile strikes on Greece. |
| 2023 | Turkey violates Greek airspace 1,172 times & maritime territory 1,642 times. |
| 2024 | Turkey violates Greek maritime territory 2,499 times. |
| 2025 | Turkey violates Greek maritime territory 2,492 times. |
| November 2025 | Turkey flies F-16 fighter jets into Cypriot airspace near buffer zone. |
| December 2025 | Greek and Turkish fighters engage in mock dogfight in Greek airspace. |
| Expansion and Overseas Basing | |
|---|---|
| Date | Event |
| April 2016 | Turkey establishes military base in Qatar. |
| May 2017 | Yiğit Bulut, Erdoğan’s senior advisor, claims Turkey must annex Northern Cyprus. |
| September 2017 | Turkey inaugurates major military base in Somalia. |
| October 2018 | Turkey formally unveils expansionist Mavi Vatan (“Blue Homeland”) doctrine. |
| November 2019 | Turkey + Libya reach deal for a new Exclusive Economic Zone that challenges Greece’s maritime claims and ink security agreements. |
| December 2019 | Turkish troops begin to be stationed in Libya. |
| December 2019 | Turkey upgrades Northern Cyprus airbase + deploys armed drones; Erdoğan claims Turkey may construct a naval base. |
| January 2020 | Turkey openly enters the Libyan Civil War in support of the GNA. |
| June 2020 | Turkey reportedly begins setting up two military bases in Libya. |
| April 2023 | Turkey reaches defense agreement with Bosnia, where Turkey has a military base. |
| April 2025 | Turkey opens military ties with Libya’s rival House of Representatives (HoR) faction. |
| August 2025 | Turkey strikes defense agreement with Ahmed al-Sharra in Syria. |
| November 2025 | Turkey begins building new military base in Somalia. |