2020 in Turkey

← 2019 2018 2017 2020 in Turkey → 2021 2022 2023
Centuries:	20th 21st
Decades:	2000s 2010s 2020s
See also:	List of years in Turkey

Events of 2020 in Turkey.

Incumbents

• President: Recep Tayyip Erdoğan
• 29th Speaker of the Grand National Assembly: Mustafa Şentop
• President of the Constitutional Court: Zühtü Arslan[1]
• Chief of the Turkish General Staff of the Armed Forces: Yaşar Güler
• Government: 66th government of Turkey
• Cabinet: Fourth Erdoğan Cabinet

Events

January

• January 2: Turkey reports a new refugee influx and possible crisis, as 250,000 Syrians flee Syria for Turkey, due to Syrian government attacks on rebel groups around Idlib.[2]
• January 3: Greece makes official protest along with other countries against Turkey's plans to deploy troops to Libya.[3]
• January 6: The new building of the National Organization Agency (MİT) opened in Etimesgut, Ankara.[4]
• January 7: Turkey signs maritime deal with Libya.[5]
• January 11: A 4.9-magnitude earthquake occurred in Silivri.[6]
• January 15: Turkey lifts its ban on Wikipedia, due to a ruling by the Turkish High Constitutional Court.[7]
• January 24: 2020 Elazığ earthquake[8]

February

• February 4–5: 2020 Van avalanches: two avalanches occurred near Bahçesaray, killing at least 41 people.[9]
• February 5: Pegasus Airlines Flight 2193 was a scheduled domestic passenger flight from Izmir to Istanbul. The Boeing 737-800 operating the route skidded off the runway while landing at the Sabiha Gökçen International Airport. Three people were killed, 179 people were injured, and the aircraft was destroyed.[10]
• February 23: 2020 Iran–Turkey earthquakes: the first one occurred on 23 February, near Khoy in north-west Iran, close to the border with Turkey, killing 9 people in Başkale, Van. It hit at 9:23 a.m. local time (05:53 UTC) with a magnitude of 5.8 M_w. About 10 hours later the same area was hit by another major earthquake of 6.0 M_w .[11]
• February 27: During the peak of Operation Dawn of Idlib 2, the Syrian Arab Air Force, and possibly the Russian Air Force, conducted two airstrikes against a Turkish Army convoy in Balyun, Idlib. The strikes resulted in the deaths of 34 Turkish soldiers according to Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.[12] (see: 2020 Balyun airstrikes)

March

• March 1: Turkey started conducting Operation Spring Shield.[13]
• March 11: The Ministry of Health confirms the first COVID-19 case in Turkey.[14] (see: COVID-19 pandemic in Turkey)
• March 12: As part of the governmental measures for controlling the pandemic, primary and secondary schools were closed for 1 week from 16 March. Universities were also closed for 3 weeks.[15]
• March 17: The first death from COVID-19 occurred in Turkey.[16]
• March 21: A curfew was imposed by the government for people over 65.[17]
• March 27: All educational programs were suspended until April 30 as a result of governmental measures for controlling the COVID-19 pandemic.[18]

April

• April 3: A curfew was imposed by the government for people under 20.[19]
• April 10: As a result of the coronavirus pandemic, a curfew was declared in 31 provinces.[20]
• April 17: In order to control the spread of COVID-19, a curfew was declared in 31 provinces which was set to last over the weekend.[21]
• April 20: Another curfew was announced by the government in 30 metropolitan municipalities and Zonguldak, restricting movement across the cities between 23–27 April.[22]
• April 27: Another curfew was announced by the government in 30 metropolitan municipalities and Zonguldak, restricting movement across the cities between 1–3 May.[23]

June

• June 1: Prohibitions and measures introduced to combat the COVID-19 pandemic started to be gradually lifted. The normalization process began.[24]
• June 14: An earthquake of 5.7 M_w hit Bingöl, Karlıova. One person was killed.[25]
• June 15: Turkey launched an air attack on the areas used as a base by terrorists in Northern Iraq under Operation Claw-Eagle.[26]
• June 17:
  • Turkey launched Operation Claw-Tiger in Northern Iraq.[27]
  • Turkish diplomat Volkan Bozkır is elected President of the 75th United Nations General Assembly. He was the sole candidate.[28]

July

• July 3: An explosion occurred in the fireworks factory in Hendek. 6 workers died and 114 workers were injured.[29]
• July 6: 450 hectares of forest were burned in the Ilgardere district of Gelibolu, Çanakkale. Transportation was stopped in the Dardanelles.[30]
• July 7: The elections for choosing the Speaker of the Grand National Assembly was held. Mustafa Şentop was re-elected.[31]
• July 10: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan annuls the Hagia Sophia's museum status, converting the site back into a mosque.[32]

Deaths

• 17 January – Rahşan Ecevit, politician (b. 1923)[33]
• 19 January – Kazım Ayvaz, wrestler (b. 1938)[34]
• 25 January – Garbis Zakaryan, boxer (b. 1930)[35]
• 14 February – Hilmi Ok, football referee (b. 1932)[36]
• 17 February – Mustafa Yücedağ, footballer (b. 1966)[37]
• 25 February – Hikmet Köksal, military officer (b. 1932)[38]
• 2 March – Suat Yalaz, comic book artist (b. 1932)[39]
• 15 March – Aytaç Yalman, military officer (b. 1940)[40]
• 20 March –
  • Cengiz Bektaş, architect (b. 1934)[41]
  • Muhterem Nur, actress and singer (b. 1932)[42]
• 24 March – Nihat Akbay, footballer (b. 1945)[43]
• 28 March – Fevzi Aksoy, academic and columnist (b. 1930)[44]
• 31 March – Turhan Kaya, actor (b. 1951)[45]
• 2 April – Feriha Öz, pathologist (b. 1933)[46]
• 3 April –
  • Helin Bölek, singer (b. 1992)[47]
  • Yusuf Kenan Sönmez, politician (b. 1948)[48]
• 14 April – Haydar Baş, politician (b. 1947)[49]
• 15 April – Ülkü Azrak, academic (b. 1933)[50]
• 27 April – Nur Yerlitaş, fashion designer (b. 1955)[51]
• 3 May – Ömer Döngeloğlu, theologian (b. 1968)[52]
• 9 June – Ayşegül Atik, actress (b. 1948)[53]
• 7 July – Jale Aylanç, actress (b. 1948)[54]
• 14 July – Adalet Ağaoğlu, novelist and playwright (b. 1929)[55]
• 17 July – Seyfi Dursunoğlu, performing artist and comedian (b. 1932)[56]

See also

• History of Turkey
• Outline of Turkey
• Government of Turkey
• Politics of Turkey

Lists of military officials

• List of Chiefs of the Turkish General Staff
• List of Commanders of the Turkish Land Forces
• List of Commanders of the Turkish Naval Forces
• List of Commanders of the Turkish Air Force
• List of Commandants of the Turkish Coast Guard

References

1. Prof. Dr. Zühtü ARSLAN / President, Constitutional Court official website.
2. Erdogan says up to 250,000 Syrians flee toward Turkey as crisis worsens. January 2, 2020. Reuters.
3. Greece, Israel and Cyprus call Turkey's planned Libya deployment 'dangerous escalation', January 3, 2020, Reuters.
4. "MİT'in yeni hizmet binası 'KALE' açıldı". Yeni Şafak. January 6, 2020. Archived from the original on January 7, 2020. Retrieved January 18, 2020.
5. Turkey-Libya Maritime Deal Upsets Mediterranean Energy Plan by Ariel Cohen, forbes.com, January 8, 2020.
6. "Silivri'de aynı noktada deprem! - Son Dakika Haberler". Milliyet.com.tr. Retrieved 2020-04-04.
7. Turkey Lifts More Than 2-Year Block of Wikipedia,By The Associated Press, January 15, 2020
8. "SON DAKİKA: Elazığ'da 6,8 şiddetinde deprem! 21 kişi hayatını kaybetti, 1030 kişi yaralandı". Habertürk. January 24, 2020. Archived from the original on January 26, 2020. Retrieved January 26, 2020.
9. "Van'da çığ altındakileri arayan ekiplerin üzerine çığ düştü". Aa.com.tr. Retrieved 2020-04-04.
10. "Son dakika haberleri: Kaza sonrası Pagasus'tan ilk açıklama: An itibarıyla can kaybı bulunmuyor". Hurriyet.com.tr. 2020-02-06. Retrieved 2020-04-04.
11. "Depremin vurduğu Van'dan bir acı haber daha". Depremin vurduğu Van’dan bir acı haber daha. 2020-02-26. Retrieved 2020-04-04.
12. "İdlib'ten korkunç haber: 9 şehit çok sayıda yaralı". Mavikocaeli.com.tr. Retrieved 2020-04-04.
13. İbrahim Yeniyurt. "Hulusi Akar açıkladı: Bahar Kalkanı Harekatı başladı!". Haber.com. Retrieved 2020-04-04.
14. "Sağlık Bakanı Türkiye'de ilk kez koronavirüs vakasına rastlandığını açıkladı". birgun.net (in Turkish). 2020-03-10. Retrieved 2020-04-04.
15. ANKARA, Erdinç Çelikkan, Erdinç ÇELİKKAN /. "Son dakika haberi: Okullar tatil mi? Milli Eğitim Bakanı Selçuk detayları basın toplantısıyla açıkladı". www.hurriyet.com.tr.
16. "Corona virüsünden ilk ölüm gerçekleşti! Türkiye'de vaka sayısı kaça yükseldi? Sağlık Bakanı açıkladı". Milliyet.
17. "65 Yaş ve Üstü ile Kronik Rahatsızlığı Olanlara Sokağa Çıkma Yasağı Genelgesi". www.icisleri.gov.tr.
18. "UZAKTAN EĞİTİM 30 NİSAN'A KADAR DEVAM EDECEK".
19. "Sokağa çıkma yasağı yaşı kaç? Cumhurbaşkanı açıkladı! 20 yaş altına sokağa çıkma yasağı mı geldi?". Milliyet.
20. "Sokağa çıkma yasağı sona erdi". TRT Haber. 12 April 2020. Retrieved 13 April 2020.
21. "Son dakika | 31 ilde 2 günlük sokağa çıkma yasağı başladı". Milliyet.
22. "23 Nisan sokağa çıkma yasağı ne zaman başlayacak, bitecek? 4 günlük sokağa çıkma yasağı ne zaman, saat kaçta başladı?". Sabah.
23. "1 Mayıs tatil mi, kaç gün tatil olacak? 1 Mayıs'da sokağa çıkma yasağı olacak mı?". Milliyet.
24. "Normalleşme süreci ve takvimi". 25 May 2020.
25. "Bingöl'de 5.7 büyüklüğünde deprem oldu". 14 June 2020.
26. "Pençe-Kartal Operasyonu". 15 June 2020.
27. "Pençe-Kaplan Operasyonu". 17 June 2020.
28. "Turkish diplomat elected President of historic 75th UN General Assembly". UN News. 2020-06-17. Retrieved 2020-06-18.
29. "Sakarya Hendek'teki havai fişek fabrikasında patlama". BBC. 3 July 2020. Archived from the original on 4 July 2020.
30. "Gelibolu'da Orman Yangını". BirGün. 6 July 2020.
31. "Mustafa Şentop yeniden Meclis Başkanı seçildi". Sözcü. 7 July 2020. Retrieved 14 July 2020.
32. "Turkey turns iconic Istanbul museum into mosque". BBC News. 2020-07-10. Retrieved 2020-07-13.
33. "Turkish politician, writer Rahşan Ecevit dies at age 97". Daily Sabah. 17 January 2020. Retrieved 1 April 2020.
34. "Turkish Wrestling Great Kazim Ayvaz Passes Away". United World Wrestling. 19 January 2020. Retrieved 1 April 2020.
35. "Turkey's first professional boxer Zakaryan dies at 90". Anadolu Agency. 26 January 2020. Retrieved 1 April 2020.
36. "Eski MHK Başkanı Hilmi Ok vefat etti" [Former MHK President Hilmi Ok passed away] (in Turkish). Anadolu Agency. 15 February 2020. Retrieved 1 April 2020.
37. "Oud PEC Zwolle-speler Mustafa Yücedag (53) overleden" [Former PEC Zwolle player Mustafa Yücedag (53) passed away] (in Dutch). 18 February 2020. Retrieved 1 April 2020.
38. "Eski Kara Kuvvetleri Komutanlarından Hikmet Köksal vefat etti" [Hikmet Köksal, one of the former Land Forces Commanders, died] (in Turkish). 26 February 2020. Retrieved 1 April 2020.
39. "Kara Murat'ın çizgi romancısısı Abdullah Turhan ve Karaoğlan'ın çizeri Suat Yalaz hayatını kaybetti! Suat Yalaz kimdir?" [Kara Murat's comic bookmaker Abdullah Turhan and Karaoğlan's cartoon Suat Yalaz lost their lives! Who is Suat Yalaz?] (in Turkish). 3 March 2020. Retrieved 1 April 2020.
40. "'Aytaç Yalman'ın corona virüs nedeniyle öldüğü kanaati oluşmuştur' (Başhekimlik açıkladı)" ['There is a conviction that Aytac Yalman died because of corona virus' (Chief Physician explained)] (in Turkish). 19 March 2020. Retrieved 1 April 2020.
41. "Mimar ve şair Cengiz Bektaş vefat etti" [Architect and poet Cengiz Bektaş passed away] (in Turkish). 20 March 2020. Retrieved 1 April 2020.
42. "Son dakika haberi: Muhterem Nur hayatını kaybetti" [Breaking news: Reverend Nur died] (in Turkish). 20 March 2020. Retrieved 1 April 2020.
43. "Vefat ve başsağlığı Nihat Akbay" [Death and condolences Nihat Akbay] (in Turkish). 24 March 2020. Retrieved 1 April 2020.
44. "Ünlü spor yazarı Fevzi Aksoy Korona virüsten hayatını kaybetti" (in Turkish). Yeniçağ. 29 March 2020. Archived from the original on 7 April 2020. Retrieved 7 April 2020.
45. "Kurtlar Vadisi'nin usta oyuncusu Turhan Kaya corona virüsten hayatını kaybetti" Posta (1 April 2020)
46. "Sağlık Bakanı Koca, koronavirüs nedeniyle ölen Prof. Dr. Feriha Öz için başsağlığı diledi" (in Turkish). Yeni Şafak. Anadolu Agency. 2 April 2020. Archived from the original on 2 April 2020. Retrieved 3 April 2020.
47. "Member of banned Turkish folk group dies after hunger strike". The Guardian. Associated Press. April 3, 2020. Retrieved April 5, 2020.
48. "Yusuf Kenan Sönmez kimdir? Yusuf Kenan Sönmez kaç yaşında ve nereli?". Sözcü. 3 April 2020. Archived from the original on 11 April 2020. Retrieved 3 April 2020.
49. "Son dakika... Haydar Baş koronavirüs nedeniyle hayatını kaybetti" (in Turkish). CNN Türk. Demirören News Agency. 14 April 2020. Archived from the original on 14 April 2020. Retrieved 14 April 2020.
50. Gönel, Güç (15 April 2020). "Prof. Dr. Ülkü Azrak Kovid-19 nedeniyle hayatını kaybetti" (in Turkish). Istanbul. Anadolu Agency. Archived from the original on 16 April 2020. Retrieved 16 April 2020.
51. "Son Dakika: Nur Yerlitaş hayatını kaybetti". Hürriyet. 27 April 2020. Archived from the original on 27 April 2020. Retrieved 27 April 2020.
52. "Ramazan programları, yeni yapımlar..." Kanal 7. 1 September 2008. Archived from the original on 20 August 2016. Retrieved 11 April 2016.
53. "Son dakika... Ayşegül Atik hayatını kaybetti!". Hürriyet. Retrieved 14 July 2020.
54. "Oyuncu Jale Aylanç hayatını kaybetti". Habertürk (in Turkish). 7 July 2020. Retrieved 8 July 2020.
55. "Adalet Ağaoğlu hayatını kaybetti". Sözcü. 14 July 2020. Retrieved 14 July 2020.
56. "Son dakika: Huysuz Virjin lakaplı Seyfi Dursunoğlu hayatını kaybetti". Sabah. 17 July 2020. Retrieved 17 July 2020.

External links

• Turkey page at Country Studies website.