🇹🇷Week of October 26

Turkey will change how public employees are paid under the 2027 Presidential Annual Program, with the pay system to be simplified. Pay levels will be set anew on the basis of duty and responsibility, and legislation will be drafted to raise staff effectiveness.12

The change covers millions of civil servants and public workers, and coverage describes it as a new era in public pay. Outlets also present it as a push toward equal pay for equal work in the civil service.345

A separate item in the same program creates a Digital Company Platform for technology-focused startups, and the automotive sector targets record exports of 45.5 billion dollars in 2027.67

The Integrated Public Financial Management Information System has been established, according to Haber 7.8

A rock fall linked to a landslide hit the Cappadocia region in Nevşehir province on Thursday. Two people died and five were injured in the collapse.12

The collapse struck a fairy chimney in Göreme, the rock formation that draws visitors to the Cappadocia region. Footage of the fallen formation was published after the incident.345

Outlets across the political spectrum carried the same toll of two dead and five injured, including state broadcaster TRT Haber, pro-government Milliyet and İhlas Haber Ajansı, and oppositional Sözcü. No outlet in the cluster reported a different figure.145

Two high-speed trains collided in Spain, killing at least 31 people, in a crash Turkish outlets described as a disaster. The collision occurred in the morning, according to President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's message on the incident.123

Erdoğan sent condolences to Spain, saying: "I extend my wishes for a speedy recovery to those affected by the train accident that occurred this morning in friendly Spain." Parliament Speaker Numan Kurtulmuş said Turkey stands with Spain, stating: "As Turkey, I express that we stand by our friend Spain, and I convey our feelings of solidarity and brotherhood to the Spanish people."34

Turkish condolences to Spain were carried across the political spectrum, with state outlet TRT Haber, pro-government NTV Haber and İhlas Haber Ajansı, and oppositional Diken all reporting the crash and the messages from Ankara.5132

Turkey's Energy Market Regulatory Authority (EPDK) is moving subscribers onto the Milli Akıllı Sayaç Sistemi (MASS), a national smart meter system. Under the plan, the meters of about 7 million subscribers are to be switched to remote reading by the end of 2027. The EPDK chairman announced the change and gave a date for it.1234

Within MASS, roughly 2.7 million Akıllı Sayaç PRO units are targeted for installation by the end of 2027, according to Sabah. The new meters are to be readable remotely and trackable from a mobile phone. Reports say existing electricity meters will be removed one by one and replaced.145

Coverage of the change runs across pro-government and opposition outlets, with Sözcü reporting that the old meters will be dismantled and replaced and a date given, and Diken reporting the shift of about 7 million subscribers to MASS over two years. KARAR reported that outages and compensation claims will be trackable from a phone under the new system.526

Local outlets reported the change reaching the provinces, with Samsun Gazetesi saying 7 million meters will be read remotely and Kanal 46 reporting the new billing system for Kahramanmaraş.789

Mustafa Sarıgül, a YENİ Parti member of parliament for Erzincan, said he will apply to have his party membership suspended until investigations into him and his family are concluded. An Istanbul investigation into the laundering of assets derived from crime had extended to his family and close circle.12

YENİ Parti said Sarıgül currently has no relationship with the party, stating that there are intense allegations against him. The party's statement followed his announcement that he would step back from membership.32

Beşir Ömer Demir, a former bodyguard of Sarıgül, told prosecutors he was subjected to sexual assault repeatedly over three years from 2021. Demir said he could not file a complaint for a long time because of Sarıgül's political influence, his own financial hardship and fear of harm to his family.45

Haber 7 published a former associate's account that he carried money to Sarıgül in bags as part of a hidden hotel partnership. The claim adds to the allegations circulating around Sarıgül as the party moved to distance itself from him.67

Turkish authorities ordered the detention of 68 suspects in an investigation into Bakırköy Municipality, including deputy mayors and municipal council members. Prosecutors are examining allegations that maladministration tainted goods and services procurement tenders and that bribes were demanded from shopkeepers during business licence procedures.12

The probe covers 42 tenders from 2024 to 2026, according to Sabah. The detention orders were reported on Tuesday, with the municipality's deputy mayors among those named in the case.34

Attributed claim: Accounts differ on how many people were taken into custody. The BBC reported 56 detentions including deputy mayors, while Sabah, TRT Haber and NTV Haber reported 68 detention orders for suspects.4312

Bakırköy Mayor Ovalıoğlu's 86-year-old father was also detained, Odatv and Cumhuriyet reported. Haberler reported that Ovalıoğlu broke his silence after his father's detention.567

Özgür Özel criticised the detention of the mayor's 86-year-old father, Son Dakika reported. Özgür Çelik called the Bakırköy operation "the new practice of a dark understanding," Evrensel.net reported.89

A tornado struck a construction site in Antalya's Kepez district, tearing apart two containers and toppling a tower crane. According to initial findings, four people died and one was injured.1

Sözcü and İhlas Haber Ajansı reported that the dead were workers, with four workers killed and one worker injured. Euronews reported the same toll of four workers killed in the tornado and storm.234

Attributed claim: Haber 7 reported a higher toll, saying five citizens died and that a statement came from the provincial governor's office. The other outlets in the cluster put the death toll at four.521

Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva won Brazil's presidential runoff, defeating his rival Flavio Bolsonaro, who announced that he does not recognize the results. The win gives Lula the presidency for a fourth time.12

European leaders celebrated the result, with Euronews reporting that Europe welcomed Lula's surprise victory under the message that democracy had won. The Kremlin praised Lula's election win and referred to Brazil's role in BRICS.34

Brazilian assets sold off after the result. Banco Santander Brasil shares fell, and Brazilian markets saw election-driven selling.56

Attributed claim: Haber 7 framed the outcome as Lula defying the United States after his victory, saying that President Trump's favored candidate lost and that Bolsonaro refused to recognize the results. Euronews and the business outlets reported the same win and the same refusal by Bolsonaro without the confrontation framing.735

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's chief adviser Oktay Saral left his post, with outlets reporting he was removed after criticizing Turkey's headscarf ban and that Azerbaijan had demanded it. Saral confirmed the departure himself, saying he left on the president's instruction.1234

Saral said his exit does not mean he has stepped back from the values he believes in. Opposition outlets reported he announced a resignation, while DW described him as being removed from his post.567

DW reported that Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev got what he wanted, but that Baku's demands are not limited to Oktay Saral.8

Attributed claim: Evrensel.net: Fatih Erbakan criticized Erdoğan over Azerbaijan, saying he sacrificed his chief adviser because Aliyev asked for it.9

Former Serbian president Aleksandar Vucic said his camp lost the early general election, stating: "According to the confirmed data we have, we lost this election." The vote was an early general election in Serbia, and the Student List won it, according to NTV Haber.123

The result followed student protests that carried the Student List to victory at the ballot box, Diken reported. Vucic accepted defeat against the student movement, Milliyet reported.43

The Kremlin said after Vucic's defeat that it wants to maintain relations with Serbia, Investing.com Türkiye reported. No further statement from Moscow was given in the headline.5

Turkish opposition politician Özgür Özel sent messages referencing Brazil and Serbia, saying: "No power is greater than the power of the people." The remark was carried in Cumhuriyet's headline on the Serbian result.6