Turkey

August 8, 2026 Ben Hubbard, Gulsin Harman and Laetitia Vançon

Whirling for 7 Days and Nights, in Search of Ecstasy

Hundreds of people attended a seven-day retreat in the Turkish countryside seeking transcendence through sema, the spiritual practice of whirling.

Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan Sign Joint Defense Pact

The agreement treats an attack on any of the countries as an attack on all, but in a region of volatile rivalries, it was unclear how it would work in practice.