Istanbul (AFP) - The Turkish Public Prosecution announced on Thursday the opening of an investigation against Ahmet Davutoğlu on charges of insulting Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, in the latest step targeting the former prime minister, who was a political ally of the president before he defected from him and announced the founding of a party.
Published on: 09/03/2026 - 13:01
The Public Prosecution stated in a statement that the investigation was opened against the backdrop of statements made by Davutoglu (67 years old) on social media platforms, which were considered insulting to the president, which in Turkey is considered a crime for which the law can be held accountable.
Following his dispute with Erdogan's government, Davutoglu founded the "Future Party" in 2019, which was unable to win popular support in the local elections in 2014, which prompted Davutoglu in August to dissolve it during an extraordinary conference.
Davutoglu is a former university professor. He served as Minister of Foreign Affairs between 2009 and 2014, then Prime Minister between 2014 and 2016.
However, the Turkish president forced him to resign in 2016 amid disagreements between the two men over several issues, especially the issue of amending the constitution with the aim of strengthening the powers of the head of state.
Davutoglu faces criticism that he is the architect of Ankara's efforts to adopt a more interventionist and assertive stance in the Middle East, such as supporting the Muslim Brotherhood and its allies in a number of Arab countries and supporting rebels in Syria, a policy that has left Türkiye with few allies in the turbulent region.
In recent years, the Turkish authorities have intensified their campaign against critics of Erdogan, his government, and its trends.
Tens of thousands of citizens, including artists and musicians, were subjected to judicial investigations on charges of insulting the president.
© 2026 AFP
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